Magic and Mayhem at XMen Manor
by dreamschemer
Summary: Harry PotterXMen crossover. What if Harry was orphaned by the Dursleys before he knew about magic? And what if the XMen found him?
1. Part I: Chapter 1 Lucky Boy

Hi everybody, dreamschemer here. I've been on a bit of a writing binge, and started this new story. It's an AU x-men/harry potter crossover which integrates and changes the plots of both stories. It is written in two parts: part one in England, part two in America, though they won't be written in full, consecutive blocks. Imagine it instead as two different world views, perhaps. Eventually the two will merge.

Other than that, I'm pretty sure the English call flashlights 'torches', if anyone's confused. If you're English and what I'm saying is completely untrue, I'm sorry and tell me what you do call them.

Harry Potter and the X-Men are in no way mine either, btw.

PART I: Life in England

Ch. 1- Lucky Boy

Harry Potter was never destined to be a lucky boy.

At the tender age of one, he'd lost his parents. By one and a half, he was sent to live with a family that would care nothing for him. By the age of four, he'd learned to stay well away from his beach ball cousin, and by age seven he'd been washing all the dishes and taken up most of the garden work. So it might not come as a surprise that at the age of eight, little Harry Potter was abandoned on the streets of London.

But it did come as a surprise to Harry.

He remembered the day clearly; despite the near year that had passed. The Dursleys were going into the city looking for upper tier schools (which would _surely_ accept their gifted Dudley), and had taken Harry with them at the last moment after finding out Mrs. Figg was sick with a cold. It had been an amazing treat for him since he rarely got to go into the city. Harry thought he had lucked out at the time, though now he knew wrong.

Harry had dutifully followed along behind the Dursleys at a respectful distance- he'd gotten a good smack or two walking too close to them before- when it happened. Vernon and Petunia were busy arguing with a tour guide and Dudley was not in sight, running amok in the bathrooms when a smiling school teacher came, escorting him away from the arguing adults

"Hello dear, my name is Ms. Flanders. Come this way, please" She said, and Harry, too flustered to think much about what he was doing, followed. Overall, the experience for Harry had been fun- he was asked to fill out some questions, and write about whatever he liked. The nice teacher smiled and beamed at him the whole way, praising him for his good work. Harry practically glowed at the compliments, trying his hardest to answer them well.

By the end of their session, Ms. Flanders was patting him on the head and telling him how he'd fit right into Thurston Academy, once his parents enrolled him. It was right about then that the Dursleys walked in, Petunia and Vernon conversing angrily about something with another older teacher as Dudley followed behind, poking Petunia with a ruler.

Aunt Petunia ignored Dudley and screeched,"There must be a misunderstanding! How dare you say my Duddykins isn't bright enough to go to this school!" Dudley trotted behind his mother making faces at the nice teacher."How could you not accept a cherub like Dudley?"

Ms. Flanders looked surprised. " Excuse, Mrs…" She looked down at the paper, "Mrs. Dursley. Well, your son _is_ accepted to Thurston," She said, patting Harry's head. Harry looked up at her, confused. "He's quite a bright lad, we'd be happy to have him."

There was a moment of silence, as the meaning of the young teacher's words sank in. And Harry knew by the way the Dursleys were looking at him that he was in trouble. Aunt Petunia's horsey face twisted in malice, and Uncle Vernon looked ready to explode, so purpled in rage. "Boy!" Vernon said in a voice just under a yell.

Stifling a whimper, Harry scrambled over in front of the Durselys, Dudley chortling at his cousin's misfortune as UncleVernon yanked him by the arm and started walking out of the building. "But Mr. Dursley, what's…" The Ms. Flanders' voice trailed after them, fading, as they rapidly made their exit.

Harry's nine-year-old mind was puzzled, but still got the overall reason for their anger: he had done better than Dudley, somehow. Harry knew to always throw games when forced to play with Dudley or else. He wondered just what 'else' would entail this time.

Once outside, Vernon almost immediately lifted his hand to smack Harry, but faltered seeing people around. Harry, who'd instinctively covered his head with his arms for protection, nearly tripped as his beefy uncle grabbed his arm again in a vice grip and dragged him down the street.

"You think you're a bright lad, going and playing nasty tricks now do you? Do you think you're clever, you freak? You wise alec?" Vernon all but growled as Harry vehemently shook his head, warily averting his eyes as he pleaded over and over, "No, Uncle Vernon, I'm sorry, sorry!". The burly man ignored him and pulled Harry into a derelict alley.

"There's only one way to put a cocksure rascal like you in your place!" He roared, slapping the boy now that he was out of public eye. Harry's glasses skidded off his face as he fell from the power of the blow, yet again breaking the spectacles. Harry curled up into a ball, trying to cover his head as the pudgy man towered over him.

"Let's just see how well you can do on your own, you ungrateful brat!" At this, Harry's broken begs for mercy and forgiveness stopped, and he looked up at his uncle with horrified eyes.

"NO! NO, I swear I'll be a good boy Uncle Vernon, _please_ don't leave me, please!" Vernon paid little attention to his pleading other than to give a twisted smirk.

Harry knew what it was like to be homeless. One time the Dursleys went on vacation, and with Mrs. Figg being on vacation too, they decided to leave Harry in Privet Drive. Locked out of the house.

It was only a five day vacation, but it had given Harry more than enough time to learn how hard it was to eat and sleep when he had no place to go. The neighbors abhorred him and would often yell at him or swat him with a broom if he was found sleeping in their gardens, and he was forced to go through dumpsters to find anything to eat. He was just lucky that it was summer and there was little need for heavy jackets and blankets, though it got decidedly cold at some points during the night.

When the Dursleys came back, red as lobsters and even crankier than when they'd left, Harry had never been so happy to see them. He'd been especially eager to cook lunch that day, despite Petunia's howls that he was dirty and would surely ruin the furniture.

Vernon looked down at the boy now begging at his feet as if her were pond scum."Serves you right, you unnatural whelp. Now- get off me!" Vernon kicked at him, catching the black haired child in the stomache and winding him. Harry lay there, breathless and stunned, as his uncle walked out of the alley looking pleased with himself.Harry's eyes, which had already been watering, overflowed in tears as he realized he'd been abandoned.

He tried to keep back the sobs, but he couldn't. Nobody loved him, he was a freak, a smart alec.

XHPXHPXHPXHPXHP

Nearly a year later, the Dursleys were the last thing on his mind. Sure, every once and a while he'd think about his past life and feel a twinge of sadness, but there were so many other important things to think about. Like where to find food, or where he'd sleep tonight, or whether Tyler's gang was going to go after him again.

Weak, incapable Harry Potter was gone and in his place was Alec, a street savvy orphan who knew how to get himself out of tough situations. Harry'd watched and learned from the other orphans about the best places to find food, areas that were warm and would make good shelter during the winter (at the moment it was _bloody cold_), and learned to swear and steal, amongst other things.

Harry was especially good at stealing; his adorable appearance and quick reflexes made him a quick study from the older kids like Mary. Mary, a fourteen year old girl with black hair and chestnut eyes, thought he was cute and looked after him as much as she could. And it was because of this Tyler was jealous of him and would try to beat him to a bloody pulp whenever he saw him. Luckily, Harry was a fast runner and had already had a few years experience from evading Dudley, so he'd only taken a few beatings.

As it was,Harry was playing it risky today: he was on Tyler's home turf since the grocery store was there, and it was one of the better places to get some food. A friend of his, Calli, had a bad bout of coughs again and Alec was determined to get food and medicine for her. All he had to do was swipe some cough syrup and a little food and he was out of there.

Warily scanning the streets for Tyler and his posse, Alec headed into the grocery store. Trying to make himself look as inconspicuous as possible he entered the store, hiding his frayed jacket sleeves and worn pants from view. The store clerk must have been blind to not notice him walking inside, but he didn't stop to think about his luck, making his way to the medicine aisle as quickly as he dared.

Looking around for cameras and witnesses, he waited until the coast was clear. When the old lady looking for headache medicine finally left, he timed himself and nicked the cough syrup when the camera was facing away from him. He moved on, covertly scratching off the price bar as he went, and headed for the food aisles. Going through the same routine as before, he stuffed a few bags of food into his coat and moved on, becoming increasingly nervous. He didn't know what had him feeling so off, but it made him want to get out of there as soon as possible.

Alec's unnamed fears were made very clear when he turned down an aisle on his way out to find Tyler on the other end, snatching some food with one of his gang members. Harry stiffened at the sight of the heavy set, dirty blond haired boy. Even for a boy of twelve, he was unusually tall and bulky and clearly more than capable of taking Alec apart. The black haired boy tried discreetly backing away, but the moment he'd stepped he was pretty sure Tyler had seen him. Giving up subtlety, Alec dashed away as fast as he could towards the door, hearing the pounding of two sets of feet behind him.

Alec nearly had a heart attack when he saw the rest of Tylers posse hanging out right outside of the store, but he kept on running, which bought him some distance from their shock at seeing him. Tyler however was still hot on his trail, so Alec tried using every trick in the book in order to get some distance between them. Tyler was a good runner, not as fast as Alec, but had better endurance. If Alec let this chase go on too long, he knew he'd be caught.

Thinking fast, he ran into an alley and lithely hopped a fence. Tyler followed him easily, along with a few others, but he'd lost at least three or four of them. Three after him, after all, made for much better odds to not eat dirt tonight.

Still running, Alec frantically tried to think up a few more ideas. Tyler had become rather efficient at guessing Alec's evasion tactics, though he'd been rather inventive. Alec's lucky streak was famous on the street: he'd never gone more than a few days without food, rarely got sick, and often escaped from danger. Alec just hoped that his lucky streak wouldn't wear out today.

Running past the barber shop, he finally got an idea and headed down a back ally. His lungs were burning by now from running full sprint for nearly ten minutes now, but he only had to keep it up for a little longer. He only hoped everything would be as he guessed it would be, or he'd surely be caught.

Sprinting across a park, he ran straight towards the sewer maintenance door, hoping one of the employees had forgotten to close it again. He thanked whatever gods were out there when his luck held, and slammed the door closed before locking it. Alec collapsed, sliding down the door as he heard Tyler and one of his goons futiley pounding on the door. He was safe, for now. Calli's medicine would have to be delayed since Tyler would doubtlessly watch the door for at least a day. Alec would have to make another food run because of it, but at least he had escaped unharmed.

After Alec had gotten his wits together, if not his breath, he started laughing. It started quietly at first, but steadily grew until he was roaring with laughter, like a man on death row pardoned at the last moment. This clearly ticked Tyler off. "You bloody wanker, you mongrel! I'll get you, you filthy sod!" Alec could hear him shouting, muffled by the door.

"_No_ you won't, you stupid arse! You never do," Alec guffawed, wondering as he said it why he seemed to _like_ living his life at knife point. "It'll be a cold day in hell before you lay a hand on me, you gangster wanna-be, ugly arsed-" Alec went on using several worse obscenities, egging the raging boy on with relish.

Eventually, the banging simmered down. Alec slowly caught his breath and stood. It was dark inside the station, even during daylight. He'd have to find a torch before it got properly dark, or else he'd be stumbling blindly around at night. He also needed to find the generating room, which would doubtlessly be the warmest place to sleep for the night.

Wandering into the equipment room, he quickly made himself at home and dug around for a torch when he noticed something odd. From the looks of it, some wild animal must have gotten into the room; supplies were scattered and upended everywhere, and food wrappers littered the ground. "Great, the raccoons got inside."

Alec slowly weaved his way towards the only source of noise in the building, while carefully memorizing his turns. He'd finally found the generating room, but was more pensive than ever. A light was on inside the room, casting a faint yellow-orange glow into the hallway. Carefully, he looked into the room to find a gas lamp haging off the far wall, and the generator as expected. Alec gave a sigh of relief as he entered the room, thankful for the warmth and light. Setting down all his findings, he opened a packet of salted peanuts and made himself comfortable.

"…mmm…mhhgn…" A voice echoed in the semi-darkness like a moan. Alec jumped to his feet, flattening himself up against a wall. "…TRASK! I'm gunna… gunna… muh…" The voice trailed off, and the room was once again silent.

Alec listened to the rambling, stiff as a board. He'd had no idea that there was someone else in here, someone who was apparently asleep and dreaming. Yet again, Alec heard the man's senseless murmurings. "…Call the team …I said… I said to…" The voice dwindled away into a soft wheeze. Apparently, the mystery man was sick. Alec looked at his bottle of cough syrup.

Knowing that the sick man was clearly not a threat, Alec slowly walked around the generator. He found a solid, gruff looking man lying prostrate on the ground. Sweat covered the man's brow in a thin sheen, giving him an unhealthy pallor. A strange metal band was strapped tight around the man's neck, and his knuckles were all bloody. He made quite the intimidating sight.

Suddenly the man rolled over and spoke again, clearly in delirium. "…haven't got… _whatchu'say, bub?_ …too tired…I-"

The man paused in his rant, the delerium clearing away momentarily. Alec realized with a jolt that the sick man was now looking at him, dark eyes focused on his small form. Alec gulped.

"Um, yeah, I…I was just staying here for a little, and…And here!" Alec pulled the cough medicine out of his pocket, and covetously poured out a dose of the liquid. Calli and the others still desperately needed the medicine, and he was loathe to give it away. But Alec _had_ to help the man. Alec had barely survived his bout of the cold, and could tell the man would surely die without it. He cautiously shuffled closer and laid the medicine within the man's grasp.

The man reached for the medicine, but failed and nearly toppled the small cup. "Hey, be careful!" Alec quickly stabilized the liquid. "Let me do it for you." Going as close as he dared to the stranger, he attentively poured the cherry flavored medicine down the man's throat. The man coughed a little and grumbled, and then his eyes took on their glazed appearance from earlier. The man rolled over and fell into a restless sleep once again.

Alec watched the strange man for a couple more minutes, wondering. The man's clothes, while torn up, looked expensive. And he talked with an accent, one Alec couldn't place. Praying for safety, and that the man was not a killer, Alec curled up next to the generator and fell asleep.


	2. Part I: Chapter 2 A Meeting With the Mu

I'd like to give my readers a little warning before you start: This chapter contains violence and the use of swear words. However the violence, while clearly noticeable is not graphic, and the worse curses are kinda blotted out. You'll know what I mean when you read it. I felt it all necessary for the tone of this chapter.

Other than that, thanks for the reviews roguishcharm, le rose noir, and Phoenix Princess555. I always love to hear that my story is enjoyed!

For all you other readers out there, please review! Thanks – dreamschemer.

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Part I : Life in England

Chapter 2- A Meeting with the Mutants

Alec groaned as he woke up, stiff from his nap on concrete. He rolled onto his side. "Whoa!- uh," An electric shock shot up his spine as the man came into view, awake and whittling what looked like a piece of metal with a blade. The blade slipped from view even as he turned over. Alec shuddered.

"Mornin' kid," The gruff man said heedlessly, as if he hadn't been holding a knife moments earlier and they weren't hiding out in a sewer.

"M-morning," Alec shot back. He quickly got to his feet, and hesitantly tried to back towards the generator door, his only escape route. However, escape didn't look viable; the bulky man stalked towards the boy, still giving him distance but standing right in the way of the door. Alec tried to conceal his terror as the older man leaned on the door frame.

" Calm down, munchkin, I ain't gonna hurt ya. You just gotta hear me out." Clearly, Alec was _not_ calming down, or would any time soon. The man sighed, but it came out as more of a growl. " Kid, you got a name?" Silence. "No? Then I'll call you four-eyes." Alec bristled at the comment. "You can call me Logan. Now four-eyes, there are some mean people trying to find me-"

"Are you a convict?" Alec burst out, nervousness overflowing. "Cause I don't care if you are, and I _swear_ I won't tell sell you out to the cops,iof you'd just-"

The man growled again. "Hold on there. I _ain'_t no escaped convict, but it might've been better off for you if I were. These guys going after me don't give a damn about people's lives. Now, all I wanta do is get you and I out of this mess safely." The man stepped forward, and Alec shrank a few steps back.

"I don't need your help! Just let me out!" Alec cried. The man was crazy.

"Look four-eyes, you did me a good turn so I'm tryin' to save your life here as well," Logan bit out. " It was a miracle the lackeys somehow missed lookin' in on this room last night, but I doubt our luck will hold. You need to come with me if you wanna get outta here alive."

"Don't threaten me!" Alec shouted. "I saw you holding that knife earlier, you're not gonna, gonna.. Don't try to trick me!"

The man Logan took another step closer. " Shh, quiet. Deep breath there, four-eyes. I promise you, I jus' wanna help you-"

"STAY AWAY!" Alec finally burst out, and with a burst of speed ran around the man and out the door.

"Well, _shit_. And the Professor said I had a way with kids."

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Alec barreled down the dark hallways, fear licking at his heels. The man was clearly some sort of dangerous psycho, babbling and making up stories left and right. Alec knew better than to take anything an adult said as truth.

Alec cursed as he stumbled and hit another protrusion with his arm. He slowed down to a staggered jog as he nursed the throbbing appendage. It was too dark to be running as fast as he was safely, but he needed to get out of this house of horrors as soon as possible.

The 'house of horrors' took a new turn when Alec heard the echoing voice. "Hey! I think I heard something! Down this way!" It was the voice of another man, not the convict Logan. And from the rhythmic pounding of several feet ringing through the halls, Alec knew there was more of them coming. Fear guided his steps as Alec ran faster than ever, oblivious to pain.

"I think we've found him!" Behind him, Alec could see the distant light of a torch. Another voice, now much closer shouted. "Permission to fire?" Alec nearly fell at hearing this.

"Granted," A voice snarled out of a reciever. "Try not to kill him, though." A rapport of bullets sounded so loud that it was hard to tell where they came from. The quiet and acoustics of the building allowed Alec to hear every word of his death sentence.

"He's going into sector eight! alpha team converge and intercept" -Another staccato of bullets-"I've got the left wing!-" "Circling now. Aim for the legs."

He knew he was encircled by these people, whoever they were, and his life now depended on his hiding skills in the virtually barren hallway. Desperate virtually no cover, Alec wriggled behind a set of pipies, praying that this would be enough to keep him hidden.

The persuers barreled in not a moment later, flashlights trumpeting their arrival. Alec's hiding spot seemed piteously poor as a group of five men in fatigue gear funneled in together from three different routes.

"I heard the stinkin' mutie running from us only moments ago!" The men paced around, searching the general premises. One of them actually flashed his light right over Alec's hiding place.

"Nothing here," Another one reported.

"Damnit!"The one closest to Alec returned. In his anger, the man shot off another round right next to Alec's hiding place, and the poor boy couldn't help but let out a startled scream.

"Found ya!" The man roughly pulled the skinny boy from behind his cramped hiding space. The gun man held Alec by the neck. "Shit man, it's just a homeless kid." He threw Alec on the floor in front of the other men. "Dale how the f- didn't your infrared scan pick up on him hiding right next to us? You just plain dumb?"

"Screw you!" The man retorted, shaking his gun at the other hit man.

"It don't matter, it was just a little pipsqueak anyways. The mutie probably left here ages ago." The hit man kicked at Alec. " Now don't start the fun without me, I'm gonna take a leak."

"Sure, sure." Was the reply

Another one of them grabbed Alec by the neck yet again, making his world hazy with a lack of oxygen. "I bet yer' some kinna freak too, aren't cha? Your folks couldn't stand you an' kicked you out?" The man sneered. "Answer me!" He slapped the suffocating boy a few times, waiting for an answer.

"Don't kill 'im yet, Dan." Alec fell to the floor once more. " Mike, you _done_ yet?"

"He's done _alright_" A new voice snarled. Before the hit men could react, 'Mike's' body was thrown at them, causing three of them to topple over. Alec quickly crawled out of the fray and took cover behind a crate a few meters away.

"Oh god! Oh god, he's _dead_ man! Get it the f- off me!" A few rounds went off in quick succession.

""Shut up! And give me a light, I can't see a damned-" _Snikt_. The man's voice cut off into gurgles and the sound of a body hitting the ground.

"Dale!_Dale_!" Two guns fired off wildly. "Where'd the flashlights go? I can't see 'im! I can't-"

"You hit me, bastards!" Another man groaned, wept. "I'm bleeding…my stomach…oh god-"

"_Dan_? Oh god I'm sorry! Don't move, we'll get you-"

"I'll cover from behind, go-" There was a ferocious growl and the sound of two more thumps. The only sound now was of the shot man whimpering in the darkness.

Alec heard a jangling sound, and couldn't help himself but to look up. The grizzly man Logan stood, mercifully shining the torch at himself, away from the ground. The man had been shot a few times in the right arm and the shoulder,as evidenced by the blood marking a dark path over his shirt. Despite being badly wounded and his actions clearly painful, the gruff man perservered in fiddling with the metal collar around his neck. There was a soft click, and the band fell to the ground.

The crying man audibly shuddered at this action. Alec watched with fascination and terror as the still bleeding bullet wounds closed up, the bullets popping out of the man's body and falling to the ground.

Logan stalked over to the only remaining hit man. "Tell yer' boss this: I ain't _no one's_ guinea pig. Got that, bub?"

The wounded man bobbed his head, eyes round as saucers as he watched the ferocious man stalk off.

Seeing that the man Logan was coming closer, Alec shrank behind the crate. Logan stopped. "Kid, what's yer name?"

The silence stretched seemingly forever. Alec was right to be scared: the man was clearly dangerous. But still, 'Logan' had saved his life. Still terrified of the man, the boy managed to barely eek out a whisper. "_Alec_".

Despite Alec's mumbling, the man heard. " Alright then, _Alec_. I took care a' these punks, but there'll be more coming. We've gotta leave soon, or we'll be dead meat."Alec shuddered, knowing the man was not lying. "I need you to _trust_ me, Alec, and come out of yer hiding place so we can get outta here."

Alec knew there was no other choice. Tentatively, the boy snuck out from behind the crate. "Ah, there you are," The man didn't move, giving Alec the courage to sidle up to the dangerous man.

"Alright kid, here's a flashlight. Now if I turn mine off, you do too. Got it?"

"Yeah." Alec nodded, heart thumping.

"Good. Now don't be afraid, just stay right behind me unless I say otherwise. I've got a feeling that a few of my friends are gonna drop in soon, so don't worry if things get… strange." With that, the man started walking down the hallway. Alec stumbled after him, jogging a little every now and then to keep up.

_Snikt_. Six shiny metal blades now protruded from Logan's hands, just like what he saw the man do earlier that day. Alec looked at the implements, astonished. "So… You're a freak like me, Mr. Logan?" The Durselys had always told him that he was unnatural, a freak for doing things normal boys couldn't do. He didn't know there were others like him.

"Not a freak, a mutant." The man looked back at the boy for a moment, "And I _like_ being one."

The duo finally made it outside to find a war zone going on. A mist hung thick in the air, and lightning bolts struck with uncanny precision at groups of flailing and frightened attackers. A blue beast was barreling through groups, grabbing guns and breaking them in half. Lastly, a bald man in a wheel chair was coming through the mist, bullets magically deflecting away from him as if they had hit a solid wall.

"Wolverine, I'm glad to see you're alright, " The man said placidly to Logan, ignoring the battle cries. "Let's get on the Blackbird, the team can't hold them off forever."

Logan grabbed Alec's arm as the three of them made their way through the thick fog. The fog petered away, uncovering a massive plane. The Professor touched a button on his wheel chair. "Wolverine found. X-men, retreat!"

The Professor started up the engines as the blue beast barreled into the ship, and the plane lifted off with the door still open. Moments later, a woman with white hair and dark skin _flew_ in through the open door. The door closed. Alec hid behind a row of seats, utterly stunned.

"Wolverine, good to see you my friend," The blue fanged creature patted the Logan's shoulder congenially. "We were getting worried about you there for a little. And apparently, we were _right_ to worry. What happened?"

"A man named Trask seems to want to get _rid_ of mutants," Logan growled out. "He had some sort a' collar that negated my healing abilities. D'you know anything about this, Professor?"

"No, I'll look into it," The bald man responded, and then flipped on the autopilot. "But first I want to meet our guest."

"Guest?" The flying woman questioned, looking around. There seemed to be no one else on the plane.

"Alec, you can come out," Wolverine called. The young boy stood up, still scared but trusting that Mr. Logan knew it was safe. He stood slightly behind the burly man, remembering what he said earlier.

"Oh my stars and garters," The beast exclaimed, "He was with you through all of_that_?"

" The kid saved my life." Logan then addressed Alec. "Alec, I want you to meet some of my friends I spoke about earlier. They're mutants like us, too. This here's Hank," He pointed to the furry blue creature.

"A pleasure to meet you," Hank greeted.

"That lady's Ororo," The woman gave him a generous smile, "And that man there is Charles."

The serious man Charles wheeled up to Alec and held out his hand."Nice to meet you, Alec. And thank you for helping out our friend."Alec timidly shook the man's hand. "You are rather good at hiding, aren't you?"

"I guess," Alec shuffled his feet and looked down, unknowingly melting the older mutant's hearts.

"I am quite proficient at sensing people, Alec. And when you were hiding earlier, I couldn't find you."

"Really?" Alec looked up.

"I couldn't even_smell_ him when he hid from me," Logan chipped in. "Had to call to him and hope he'd come out."

"I just- just didn't want to be found…" Alec mumbled.

"Alec, where does your family live?" Alec turned away, upset. He thought he was over it, but his abandonment still hurt.

"Alec, are you alright?" The Professor questioned gently.

"They didn't want me. I don't _need_ a family, you hear?" Alec crossed his arms, feeling vulnerable. The team's heart went out for the young orphan.

The professor continued carefully. " Alec, I know you don't need a family, but I've always wanted a big family of children _just like you_. Would you like a brother, Alec?"

Alec looked at the nice man, stunned. " What?…I…" Alec had always pictured himself with his _real_ parents, happy and content, playing with the siblings he never had.

" My colleagues and I have started a school for children with special gifts like your own. If you wish, you can live there with all of us. You can have your own bed, go to school, have hot meals…"

To Alec, it sounded like a dream come true. "And I'd have…A brother?"

"His name is Scott. He's two years older than you, and I'm sure he'd love some company.

"Mr. Logan, you'll be there?" Alec asked.

"Sure, kid." Was his gruff response.

Alec stumbled over his words. "I-I'd like that." The older mutants smiled broadly, and Logan took his hand. "But first, can we get some cough syrup for my friends?"

"Of course, Alec." Xavier responded. "And if they want, I think I might know a place they can stay as well."

"Now let's get buckled up, kid." Logan odered. "And you might wanta try to sleep a' little- it's a long ride to America."


	3. Part II: Chapter 3 Enter the New Mutant

Hey again folks! This chapter's going to be a bit more sedate, with (surprise!) the introduction of a bunch more characters. I hope you keep in mind that I'm writing some of my characters as children, so yes they'll occasionally be snotty or petulant or silly- that's what little kids do.

And on the topic of children: I _never_ understood why the X-Men have always consisted of newly reruited adults or teens. Well, I actually _do_ understand that adult and teen heroes will sell better then child heroes, from an economic standpoint. But as far as I'm concerned in a real life position, the more children the better. Little kids are so much more impressionable- the events happening during their formative years can completely change the outcome of their personality. At least I think so. And concurrent with this idea, my characters will be at times distinctly different than the evo or HP characters because of their different upbringing. I'm not going to do it, but it would be interesting to have an AU story where Avalanche is brought up at the mansion, while cyclops has a lousy past and becomes part of the brotherhood.

I'd like to thank ladykind, mrmistoffelees, and stripes for their reviews! For everyone else reading, please review! It makes me happy reading them, and makes me want to write more.

Other than that… I've got nothing to say! Enjoy the chapter!

PART II: Life in America

Chapter 3- Enter the New Mutants

A year had passed since the incident in London. Alec had easily integrated to life at the mansion, being overwhelmingly grateful for almost everything he was given. He quickly made friends with the older boy Scott, who was just as keen on having family. He thought Scott's mutation was really cool: the boy could shoot lasers out of his eyes.

"I once had a little brother, you know," Scott sadly mentioned one time.

"Really? What happened to him?" Alec asked sympathetically.

"Don't know. You remind me of him, a little." Scott smiled.

"Really?"

"Yeah."

"I wish I had a brother. I had a cousin, but he was mean and would beat me up," Alec sighed.

"Well, how about a sister?" Scott asked.

"Huh?"

"I mean, not a sister, really… But the Professor told me a girl's enrolling here soon. She's the same age as me."

"_egg rolled_?"

"No, _enrolled_. As in she's going to go to come and live with us, dweeb. Her family's sending her here to help with her powers."

"Oh. But girls are gross! And they like _pink_!" Alec made a face.

Scott made a face as well. "I know. But at least now we'll have someone else to pull pranks on!"

A pretty red-headed girl named Jean Grey arrived a week later with a pair of nervous parents. Both boys were excited to meet her, despite girls being 'icky'. Apparently, Jean was what the Professor called a 'Telekinetic'. Both boys had to practice saying the word.

While Professor Xavier was talking to the girl's parents, Scott and Alec went up to the girl. "Hiya. I'm Alec and this is Scott," Alec piped up. Scott had become unusually quiet for some reason.

"Nice to meet you. I'm Jean," The girl did a little curtsy.

"Ugh, you're so_girly_," Alec stuck out his tongue. "Bet you don't even know how to climb a tree,"

"I do _too_! My parents wanted me to be on extra good behavior is all…" She grumbled, folding her arms.

"Yeah right, girly-girl," Alec chimed.

"I can too!"

"Alec, leave her alone!" Scott finally spoke up.

"You know what, I'll climb a tree right now!" The two boys trailed after the redhead as she marched up to a sturdy oak.

"Don't listen to Alec, Jean, he's just a stupid kid!" Scott called as she hiked her dress up.

"_Hey_!" Alec retorted. "Don't call me that, bozo!"

"_Who_ are you calling bozo?!"

"Look, I'm already up to the second branch," Jean interrupted. " _see_?"

"Yes, we _see_. Now come down before you get hurt ," Scott pleaded.

Jean didn't listen."But I can climb higher than this! I'm really good at climbing, you know?"

"Yeah, you _are_ pretty good at climbing," Alec returned. "Guess you're not that girly after all." Jean beamed in triumph.

"I told you so! Now I've just got to- watch my step as I go… down." Jean accidentally stepped on her dress, ripping it. "Oh no! My dress! I- ahhHH!" Jean slipped and fell off the branch.

"_Jean_!" Scott dashed to catch her, and she fell right onto him, sending him tumbling to the ground. The redheaded mutant _bounced_ off of the boy, and continued bouncing for another few feet until she finally stopped in a bush.

By now, the adults were running over towards them. Jean quickly got up. "Oh Jean, what_happened_? Are you alright?" Jeans mother looked torn between worry and anger.

Her father looked troubled."Your pretty dress, it's ruined! What in the world were you thinking, sweetheart?" Her father sighed. "We can only hope the Professor will accept you now." Jean looked away, tears forming in her eyes.

Professor Xavier made it there a few moments later. "I'm sorry mom and dad, I didn't mean to!" Jean cried.

"It was my fault, Professor! Honest!" Alec said miserably. "I called her a girly-girl and said she couldn't climb a tree and-"

"Calm down,_everyone_." The Professor interrupted, and inexplicably everyone hushed. "Mrs. And Mr. Grey, I'd be honored if your daughter attended this school. I understand that children are children, mutant abilities or not. And Alec, Scott, _please_ refrain from inciting our new pupil." Scott grumbled, saying he did 'nothing'.

"however Alec, I noticed that a new ability emerged."

"Again?" Alec groaned.

"I hardly think Ms. Grey here naturally _bounces_. I have a feeling that we haven't actually learned what your true abilities are yet." Professor Xavier gently explained.

"So these are the other pupils?" Mrs. Grey asked. "

"Yes, madam." The Professor responded. "And I promise you they are much more of a handful than your Jean."

"_hey!"_ The two boys chorused.

The Professor chuckled. "Now if you'd follow me this way…"

Months passed, and the new girl Jean smoothly adjusted to living at the mansion. Despite what Jean said, she _was_ kind of girly and liked make up and dresses. Alec never bothered her about it again, but steered clear of baby dolls and frill. Scott took to following her around like a little puppy dog however, much to Alec's annoyance. After practicing fighting and working out for a long time, Alec and Scott were finally allowed into the danger room.

A couple of days before Christmas, the mansion welcomed another young mutant into the fray.

"Alec, Scott, Jean, would you come here please?" Ororo called to the trio nestled on the couch watching Charlie Brown.

"Coming!" Jean called, jumping out of her seat. She was quickly followed by Scott and then Alec.

The three ran to the front of the rec room to find the weather witch waiting patiently for them. A small figure was huddled behind her, a patch of brilliant white hair hanging in front of her face. The rest of her hair was a deep auburn red "Children, I would like you to meet our newest member, Anna. Anna's a ten year old from Mississippi."

"Hi Anna, nice to meet you," Jean smiled, holding out her hand. The girl backed away as if burned, and Jean stepped back and anxiously withdrew her hand.

"Oh, forgive me dear." Storm apologized to the little girl. "Anna doesn't like being touched, so just say hello to her,"

"Hello, Anna," The three chorused. The girl tucked a little of her hair behind her ear, and stared at the three of them with brilliant green eyes.

"Anna, do you have something to say?" Ororo gently chided.

"Hello," She whispered. She turned to Ororo. "Can ah go now?"

Ororo looked a little dismayed, but lead the girl away. "Of course. I'll show you to your room, just follow me this way…" The two walked off.

"What's up with _her_?" Scott asked.

"I don't know," Jean responded, clearly perturbed. She felt a little snubbed at the fact that the girl wouldn't shake her hand. "But she felt so…desolate." Jean continued. "She's _really_ sad about something."

"I wonder why she doesn't like being touched?" Alec said questioned. As an orphan on the London city streets, he'd seen some terrible things. He hoped none of it happened to that poor girl.

"Who knows," Scott grumbled. "Come on, Charlie Brown's back on." The three ran back to the couch, happy to watch Christmas cartoons.

The days passed by with relative ease.Preparing for Christmas was a fun, yet akward affair. With Anna having come a little under a week until the big day, everybody had to scramble to get gifts for the new mutant. Anna herself was given fifty dollars to spend on gifts, which the girl found nearly impossible to believe.

"But… This is yours!" She kept repeating to Logan, who was currently escorting them on their trip to the mall.

"I know. But I'm givin' it to you, so you can buy me a present." Logan grunted.

"Y-you want me to buy ya that powder too?" The girl shuddered, her voice growing thick. "Please don't make me! those men are mean, and they made me taste it once, and I-"

"Shhhh darlin, nothin' like that," Logan reached out for her hand to comfort her.

"NO!" The girl jerked her hand away. "Leave me alone!" Anna ran away.

"Crud." Logan ran his hands through his hair. He turned to the other children. "Kids, could ya stay with Hank for a moment? I've gotta find Anna." Scott and Jean nodded.

"I'll come with you!" Alec said.

Logan grunted."Fine. But no quick moves towards her, the girl's gone through a lot of trauma." Alec nodded obediently and followed after the older mutant following the youn girl's scent.

They finally found Anna hiding behind a potted plant and bench near the exit. "Anna, darlin," Wolverine called lightly. The two-toned head shot up, her bottom lip trembling. Her eyes were red-ringed and tearful.

"I-I'm sorry," Anna sobbed. She didn't come out from her hiding place.

"Anna, come out child," Ororo had come and sat on the floor a distance away as well. Logan moved back a bit, knowing Storm could handle this better "You did nothing wrong, there's nothing to apologize about."

The girl held herself, tears streaming down her face. "Don't you see that I'll _hurt_ y'all?" The girl cried. "Just leave me alone. I'm sorry I didn' understand you, Mr. Logan. Here's your money." She threw the lump of cash over the bench.

"Why would you hurt anybody?" Alec said to her, bewildered.

"mah mutation, it's…" She quieted.

"But that's why we brought you here, Anna. So you can learn to control your ability." Ororo called.

Alec realized he didn't _know_ what she could do. They saw her so rarely that he didn't even think about it. "What does your mutation do Anna?"

Anna looked at him, teary eyed. "They didn' tell ya? I'm dangerous! Ah, Ah think I killed my foster dad-"

"Anna, darling, please come out!" Ororo pleaded.

Anna ignored Ororo, talking only to Alec. "-An' it's lahk, _(sniffle_) it's like I'm him, and he's me, and I cain't get away from him!" The girl sobbed harder. "And ah _hate_ him," she whispered. "I know what he's done, and it's terrible!"

Alec wanted to cry, but he didn't. Instead, he carefully wormed his way under the bench despite Ororo and Logan calling him back. Anna sidled away. "No, Anna, please stay here," Alec begged. The girl stayed, wiping the tears from her face.

"How does your power work?" Alec asked quietly.

"It's when… It's when I touch someone, skin to skin like," She mumbled.

"Then if I pull down my sleeves," Alec bunched up his long sleeve shirt and covered his hands, "Then that's okay?"

Anna sniffled. "Ah guess," She scratched her head.

"Good." And then Alec hugged her. Anna fought him at first, surprised and terrified, but he kept on holding her murmuring that he was fine, she wasn't hurting anybody. Anna slowly gave in and let him hug her. Then she eventually hugged him back, and soon after was sobbing on his shoulder.

The x-men left the mall shortly afterwards, and Anna never let go of Alec's cloth-covered hand. Scott and Jean watched the other two children with surprise, having missed most of the debacle.

"Alec, everything okay?" Scott asked hesitantly.

"It's getting better," He responded.

After the event in the mall,Professor Xavier scheduled a woman to come visit the children in January to 'help them to adjust to their new environment'. To the kids, it sounded like a punishment for Anna's behavior. "_I_don't need help adjusting!" Jean protested.

"I know, but she'll be able to help all of you in unique ways." The Professor explained.

Christmas was a quiet event, due to the unfavorable mood that swept the whole mansion. Anna hadn't had another chance to get presents for the team, so at Hank's suggestion she drew some cards and put seven dollars in each one. Alec noted with a certain amount of delight that his card was drawn the best, and that it had eight dollars in it.

Everyone else's presents were nice as usual: Scott's favorite was a book on cars from Logan, and Alec loved his walkie-talkie set from the Hank. Anna handled the small leather gloves Ororo gave to her like they were made of the finest cut crystal, and Jean flounced around in the new dress her parents bought her. All of the orphans were a little jealous of Jean's gifts from her parents and kept it to themselves, but Jean being empathic picked up on it and soon wasn't flouncing any more.

The day finished off with a snowball fight, hot chocolate and a sleigh ride as a surprise gift from the Professor, which substantially cheered up the gang. The older mutants even joined in on their merriment. Hank joined in the snowball fight and threw what he called 'The Abominable Snowballs of Doom' (AKA really big snowballs). Ororo called for a little bit more snow to fuel the fight, and even threw a few snowballs herself. Logan stubbornly exclaimed that he wouldn't join in the mayhem, but the kids knocked him down and they soon had their own snow demon chasing after them. Even Anna was laughing, Alec noticed with happiness as he nailed her with a another snowball.

"Alec!!" The tiny girl growled, face glowering "Ahm gonna get you _soo_ bad!" Alec laughed at her, and the girl charged him sending them both tumbling into the snow.

"Alec, be careful there!" Scott called anxiously, before getting hit by the snowball he himself had thrown. "Jean, _no fair_!"

Alex rolled his eyes."I'm fine, doofus!"

"Names," The Xavier lightly chided.

"Sorry Professor." Alec apologized.

By then, Anna had already gotten up and was going inside the mansion for a cup of hot chocolate. Alec scrambled after her.

"Hey, Anna! Wait up!" He called after her. She stopped and watched him tromp towards her.

Alec chattered on. "Never would've guessed a tiny thing like you could throw a snowball so far! Scott didn't even see it coming the first time!" Alec chortled. "Though it was a bit unfair of you to use me as a shield. I got hit by Mr. McCoy 'cause of that! And did you see-"

"Why do you treat me so nice?" Anna broke out, stopping Alec's prattling.

"What do you mean?" Alec asked, confused.

"I mean, you act like you don't _care_ about…y'know." She looked down.

"What?" Alec was even more confused.

"You know…" At his blank stare, she huffed. "Mah _mutation_."

"What about it?" Alec continued. "Everyone here has a mutation, too. And mine's so weird even the Professor isn't sure what it is. So why do _you_ act like you don't care about my mutation?"

Anna bit her lip, a little smile breaking out over her face. "I dunno…I guess 'cause yer nice."

Alec grinned. "So are you."

From the distance, Xavier and Hank watched the two young mutants trot indoors. "I'm glad Anna found someone to open up to," Hank commented. "For a little while there I questioned if we could ever help her, but she came out of it all on her own."

"More like she came out of it all on her own with the help of young Alec," Xavier responded. "Jean and Scott are a tad distant from her, probably due to her poor introduction to the group. I should have waited to bring her in from the psychiatric ward."

"No, you did right," Hank returned. "I saw her condition there. Her mental health was deteriorating rapidly, and the staff had no clue on how to help." The furry man growled. "In fact, I'm almost sure they exacerbated it."

"Either way, while her condition currently seems stable she may not remain like this unless she gets proper help. From Logan's account at the mall, the girl is much worse off than we first anticipated."

"I realized," Hank responded.

"So understanding all of this, I'd like your opinion Hank: Is it wise to erase certain memories, and _inhabitants,_ from the girl's mind with help from Martha?"

"Oh my…A hard choice," Hank answered seriously. " If you're not careful, that could lead to some serious complications. But with Martha to guide you, the chances of complications _would_ be drastically reduced. I can't give you a one-hundred percent on this answer, but it sounds like a wise idea to me."

The Professor nodded, his gaze on the horizon. " I just wish we had gotten to her earlier. She'll grow up to be a very powerful mutant, Hank, I know she will. And the choices we make now may very well affect her for the rest of her life. I _do_ hope I choose right."


	4. Part II: Chapter 4 Alec's Letter

Hi all, sorry it took so long to post. A series of incedents (like my internet being down, my car having a flat, and my cell phone lost) caused loads of trouble for me to do anything, let alone post a new chapter. But no worries, the next one is being written. Other than that…. Idk.

Oh yeah, I'd like to thank my reviewers, Nercia Genisis, Amarathine, Phoenix Princess555, JennMel (btw, strangely good??? Huh?), darthdrew1704, ladykind, and rogan444. I'm really happy that I got tons of reviews, yet am puzzled: how do I always have more alerts than reviews at all times?!!!

Well enjoy the story!

Part II: Life in America

Chapter 4 – Alec's Letter

A nice woman, the one Professor Xavier had mentioned a while back, finally visited the Mansion in mid-January. She was a kind, gentle old woman named Martha who talked to each of them separately about their feelings and health.

Alec was surprised to find himself spilling his whole life story to the grandmotherly woman, but she was warmhearted and compassionate and he cried his heart out over a box of Kleenex. Afterwards, Alec felt as if a great weight had been lifted off his shoulders and he was now free as a bird. The kind lady then offered to heal his near-sighted eyes and the scar on his face, and he joyfully agreed.

"There you are, child. No more need for these glasses." Martha smiled magnanimously, and then put her hand over his scar. Her brow knit in concentration as Alec felt the skin on his forehead seamlessly merge.

"That's odd," She mumbled, moving her hands away.

"Huh? What's odd?" Alec ran up to the mirror, looking at his now spectacle-less, scar-less face. "I can't believe it's all gone!" He whooped in appreciation.

"Martha, you called me?" The Professor wheeled in.

"Yes Charles," She responded pleasantly. "I just healed young Alec's scar here, but something felt off."

"What?" Alec yelped. "But I'm okay, right?"

"Perfectly fine, darling," She smiled at him. "But while the skin has healed over his scar, I'm sure the scar somehow _remains_." She looked a little vexed. "I suggest you monitor that, for safety's sake."

"Well, you're all done Alec!" Martha smiled at him and offered him a lollipop, which Alec readily accepted. Alec skipped out of the room, a silly smile plastered onto his face.

Martha's grandmotherly demeanor changed to a more serious one as she turned to the Professor. "I've done a lot to help the boy, but he has had a more rocky past than expected. I trust that you know his early formative years were spent with mutant haters?"

"Yes, we recognized that," The Professor agreed.

"What you might not know then, is that Alec also went through a terrible trauma around the age of one. He only vaguely remembers it, but it lingers with him. And I think it's somehow connected with that scar of his."

Xavier looked contemplative. "Hmm. No, I wasn't aware of his earlier trauma. Please add all your observations to his record, including your hypothesis about the trauma and his scar. This is all very curious."

"Indeed." Martha replied. "It would not go amiss if you repressed some memories of his earlier life for his well-being."

"I'll take that into consideration. But for now, Anna is on her way here," Both mutants looked as if they were surgeons preparing for a incredibly intricate surgery. "If you feel even the slightest pain from her, please stop me."

"Of course Charles," She said, disquieted. "I'm just as afraid of turning her into a vegetable as you are."

. The nice lady Martha left a week after she came. After Anna had her talk with Martha, she was really sleepy and didn't wake up for three days. This put the whole house in a tizzy, and Professor Xavier and Martha personally watched over her for all three days.

Alec, Jean and Scott came by to see her on the third day and brought flowers and a few toys for when she woke up. She looked completely fine to Alec, other than she was sleeping. "Come on, wake up sleepy-head," Alec called, slightly shaking her.

"Alec, please leave Anna be," The Professor admonished.

"But she's just_sleeping_" Alec groaned. "When will lazy bones get up?"

"M'not lazy," Anna's sleep-laced voice muttered. Instantly, the room erupted.

Dr. McCoy was the first to respond, grabbing his stethoscope and coaxing her into full wakefulness. "Anna dear, do you hear me?"

"Mhm, Dr. McCoy," She made a big yawn as the other children were corraled into the hallway.

"Can you sit up for me, dear? That's a girl. Now, what do you remember?"

"That Alec called me 'lazy bones'." Another gaping yawn. She rubbed the sand out fo her eyes. "I am _not_!" The adults shared a relieved smile.

XHPXHPXHPXHPXHP

The rest of Alec's winter passed by with the speed of a hurricane right into spring. All the children seemed much happier since Martha visited, and Scott and Jean even seemed to be a little more friendly to Anna. Alec's heart did a funny twinge as he thought about Anna, and how much more bright and playful she'd become since the day she woke up. She was still worried about hurting people, but no longer sought solitude all the time. And the two of them had become much closer friends, spending nearly every waking moment together in one or another little escapade. All four children continued their counseling with Professor Xavier, and life was good.

Summer rolled in without so much as a blip of discomfort, and the kids had great fun hanging out at the pool with their school friends and going to summer camp. They continued practicing martial arts, and Anna and Jean joined the boys in their practice in the danger room. Anna threw a mean punch, as Jean found out on their first sparring match. Jean was still literally and figuratively sore about it, especially as both Scott and Alec joked about the incedent.

Time flew by and July was almost over, leaving Alec brimming with excitement. Tomorrow would be his birthday, and having spent almost two years with his adoptive family he knew there'd be a big celebration.

Alec woke up on July 31 to a squealing girl jumping on his bed. "Happeee birthday tooooo yooouuu, happeee birthdayyy tooo-"

"Anna!" Alec growled playfully, hitting her with his pillow .

"Hey!!!" Anna grabbed another pillow and started bludgeoning back, eventually sending them both sprawling onto the carpeted floor in laughter.

"_Anna_, you were supposed to wait for us!" Jean cried, finding Alec and Anna giggling madly on the floor.

"Oh well," Scott said carelessly and he jumped on his adoptive brother and started giving him the famed 'birthday noogies'.

"Gerroffame!" Alec squirmed as Scott counted, "…ten, eleven, and one for good luck!" Alec squeezed out of the older boy's hold and started attacking with a pillow.

"Augh! Jean, protect me from that monster!" Scott laughed as he was chased around the room.

"Sorry Scott, it's Alec's birthday. He can do whatever he wants!" Both girls tittered as the boys rampaged through the house waking everyone else up. What did it matter that it was five thirty in the morning on a Saturday?

The older mutants came down a half hour later looking like they had risen from the dead. " Good morning children, and happy birthday Alec." The professor blearily greeted, clinging to a mug of coffee. He was the last of the Professors to make it downstairs, seeing as dressing was more of a challenge. Ororo had already started an extra-strong brew of coffee, and was currently cooking a special birthday breakfast for Alec in the kitchen. Logan was muttering darkly about children and hyperactiveness to himself as he took a deep gulp of his 'specially made' coffee. Specially made as in spiked with rum. Hank on the other hand was vainly trying to stay awake, having spent most of last night staying up reading a particularly interesting medical journal.

"Is it present time yet, Professor?"Alec asked excitedly.

"Hr- um, no. Not yet, Alec. We'll leave that for your party later today." Evidently the Professor was having trouble staying awake as well.

"Oh pretty please, pretty please could I just have one for now?" Alec wheedled.

"I can give my gift to Alec," Scott volunteered.

"Let him have the present," Wolverine growled stormily. It didn't sound like a suggestion.

"Yes, go on Scott, go on," The Professor distantly answered. Alec whooped for joy as Scott ambled up the stairs to get the present.

"What did you get me Anna?" Alec said, grinning.

"None of your business yet!" She retorted.

"But you said I could know on my birthday! It's my birthday!" Alec had been haggling all the kids about his presents for the last few days.

" Well, I didn't say _when_ on your birthday," She smiled wickedly and stuck out her tongue.

"What did you get me Jean?" Alec asked, turning to the other side.

" A Transformer. You seem to like them a lot." Anna looked scandalized while Alec did a little victory dance.

"But you're not supposed to tell him what his present is!" Anna cried.

Jean smiled, laughing. "It's his birthday, he gets what he wants."

Wolverine let out what sounded like a small roar."I don't care whose birthday it is, the noise level in this room better drop by _half_ or I might not feel too kindly about you munchkins."

The kids covered their mouths, but couldn't help from bubbling with laughter. "_This_ must be my penance," Logan ground out, head thudding on the table.

XHPXHPXHPXHPXHP

Alec's party was going on in full swing. It was a water balloon/pool party, and he had invited twenty of his school friends.

Anna swam around having great fun showing off her spandex diving suit, flippers and snorkel to some of their school friends, while Alec and Scott lead opposing sides of the watter balloon battle that Mr. McCoy jokingly named 'Waterloo' (most of the kids didn't get the joke). Mr. McCoy himself was of particular interest to the school children.

"So, what are you 'supposed to be, the Hulk?" Said a boy.

"Nah! The Hulk's green, 'member?" Another one responded.

Hank laughed. "No, I'm called the _Beast!_" He roared and started 'catching' the kids as they ran away hollering in excitement.

Jean was sitting at the pool side with a few of her friends chatting, while Logan guarded the barbecue, flipping burgers and hot dogs. Soon it was time for cake, and a small wet army sat around the outdoor porch table as Alec blew out the candles.

Soon after came present time, and Alec made a veritable mess of boxes and wrapping paper as he charged through his pile of presents. He politely thanked each person as he opened the gifts as the Professor had told him, while Ororo wrote a list of names and presents so he could write thank you cards later.

Alec nearly squeezed Anna to death when he opened her present to find a book all about Great Britain. Although Alec did not have many happy memories of his life in London, he still felt a longing for the place.

Finally the party petered down as their friends were picked up by their parents one by one. Alec dutifully said goodbye to all of them, waving as the last one left.

"Oh Alec, I found this in the mail for you," Ororo handed Alec a letter. Alec sat down of the front stairs and opened it.

Dear Alec Xavier,

I am pleased to inform you that you are a Wizard, and have been accepted by the New York Academy of Magical Arts. Established in 1804, this Academy has been designed to welcome and help magical people of all races, creeds, and gender to develop their special gift.

According to our records, your parents/legal guardians are not registered as witches or wizards, so we understand that there might be some skepticism about the validity of this letter. Enclosed is a packet for you and your parents/legal guardians to peruse and help with your understanding of your new-found gift.

For a tour of the Academy, please send the attatched form via standard mail. A representative will visit shortly afterwards to introduce the student and family to magic, while giving a tour of the Academy.

Sincerely Yours,

Amanda Lin

Deputy Headmistress

There was a form and a list of things for the next few pages, but Alec excitedly flipped past it and grabbed the pamphlet attatched to the letter. It was labeled: You and Your Magical Gift. It had a picture of a boy and a girl holding wands with colored sparks flying from the tips. Alec watched the picture in fascination as the children on the cover twirled around and laughed, their sparks landing on one or the other every so often.

"It's _moving!_" Alec muttered to himself, astounded.

"What's moving?" Anna asked, wrapped in a towel. She was still in her dripping wet dive suit.

"C'mere, look at this!" Alec exclaimed. Anna came over and sat down by him, her eyes going round as she looked at the picture.

"Alec, what _is_ this?!" Anna exclaimed.

"Here, look at the letter," he answered, giving her the parchment. Anna's eyes flew over the paper.

"You're- a_wizard_?" Anna replied, stunned.

Alec grinned proudly. "Guess I am," He flipped to the next page of the pamphlet, titled: _What is Magic?_

"Anna, Alec, would you please come inside?" Beast called from the front door.

"Just a second Mr. McCoy! I wanna finish reading my letter!" Alec called back.

"Only a moment moment more, then. Who's the letter from?" Hank walked out, ready to shaperone the children inside.

"_Amanda Lin, Deputy Headmistress_," Anna recited.

"That's nice-" Hank doubled back. " Who?"

Anna giggled. "I just told you silly. It says _Amanda Lin, Deputy_-"

"May I see the letter, Alec?" Henry asked. Alec nodded and handed the pamphlet and parchment over. The furry blue man read the papers, his expression going from annoyance, to incredulity, to awe. Anna and Alec distractedly waited for him to finish reading the letters, prattling on about magic and cauldrons and spells "Oh my stars and garters," Dr. McCoy finally breathed, having finished reading it over.

"Isn't it cool? I'm a _wizard_!" Alec said excitedly, hopping around. "Can I go, please-please-please??"

Beast seemed to have barely heard Alec. "Why don't we show this to Professor Xavier, hm?"

XHPXHPXHPXHPXHPXHP

The whole mansion had gathered in the break room

"Hello everyone," The Professor began, "I'm sorry for having interrupted our plans to go to the movies (a collective groan from the kids). However, something of greater significance has been brought to my attention. Our young friend Alec received a letter this afternoon explaining that he is, in fact, a wizard."

Ororo and Logan shared expressions of skeptical disbelief.

" You're a _wizard_? Really?" Jean asked Alec. "But my parents told me magic was just make believe!"

"How do they know you're a wizard?" Scott asked, perplexed. " You don't look like a wizard to me, just Alec!"

"Well I _am_," Alec countered stubbornly.

"There is no mistake. Alec actually is, a _wizard_." The Professor echoed, a little surprised himself at his words.

"Forgive me Professor," Ororo spoke up, "but how can this be _real_? I grew up around Shamans and healers; most of them were frauds, and the few who weren't had mutant powers for validity. What makes you think this is real?"

"Trust me Ororo, I would have been just as doubtful as you if not for the letter, and the fact that what it said made sense." The Professor handed the papers over for Logan and Ororo to peruse.

"For the past two years I have been baffled over Alec's powers. His ability was sporadic, inconsistent, continually changing, and completely undetectable. I initially thought the indetectability had something to do with Alec's powers, but this hypothesis was rather weak. Yet now I am sure: Alec is not a mutant at all, but a wizard."

The table broke out into conversation. "Alec, can you teach _me_ some magic?" Anna asked.

"Sure, no problem!" Alec crowed. He scratched his head. "Once I learn it, I guess…"

The Professor quietly coughed for attention. "In light of the fact that Alec is not a mutant, but a wizard, I believe it is in our best interests that we should all visit this 'Academy'." The room buzzed with excitement.

"Wow, we get to see the place too?" Jean asked, stunned.

The Professor smiled. "Indeed. I just sent out a form asking for a tour. I expect they will send a response within a few days-"_ding-dong_.

Everyone looked towards the front door. "Who the _hell_ got by the security systems?" Wolverine growled.

"Logan,_language_" Ororo rebuked half-heartedly ; she too was surprised by the mysterious called who had made it to their front door without ringing from the gates. _Ding-dong_, the doorbell went off again.

"Everyone, on your guard," Beast reminded as they walked over to the foyer.

"Children, stay back," Ororo instructed. The kids scuttled up the staircase, taking shelter behind two greco-style statues. _Ding-dong. Ding-dong_. Whoever it was was getting impatient.

Hank grabbed the handle and looked at Logan. "On the count of three," Logan nodded, understanding.

"One, two, three!" The door was flung open, and Wolverine sprang out in all his raging glory, claws extended and growling fearsomely.

"_AAHHHH!!!!"_ A thin young man screeched, and jumped away just in time to miss Wolverine's claws. He fumbled with his robe, eyes agog as he watched the burly man turn around.

"Please, please! Don't attack!" Quivering, he pointed a shaking wand at the growling mutant. "_How'd_ I get roped to this job…"

"Wolverine, wait," The Professor called. "Dear sir, are you by any chance a representative for the New York Academy of Magic?"

"_What else_ would I be!" The man spluttered, seeing he was no longer in danger."Didn't you just send a request for a tour of the school?"

The Professor looked startled. "Yes, but only a few minutes ago. The letter surely couldn't have arrived…"

"_Muggles_," The man groused.


	5. Part II: Chapter 5 The Academy

Hi again everyone. Boy, do I have quite a lot to talk about in today's post. First off, I'd like to profusely thank Ladykind the awesome reviewer, JennMel my helpful critic (I love you for bringing up your opinions, don't stop), and Nercia Genisis the super sweet commentator. You all rock my socks.

Nobody else reviewed. However, TWENTY-ONE of you alerted my story this chapter WITHOUT REVIEWING. Come on! Do I not ask for reviews every chapter? Am I not nice? Do you _not_ like the story you're putting on your alert list?! Show me some love!

Other than that (grr), I have a little bit to explain about this chapter. First of all, I am going to include the original Harry Potter characters, but they come in at a later time. Second of all, my Academy is not so important to the story, just a means to an end. I like the idea of my magical school, but the focus will (for now) still be on Xavier Mansion. I'm just setting up the path to what happens in the future.

One more thing: I modeled a character after another certain fictional character just for fun. See if you can pick it out, it shouldn't be too hard to spot.

Okay, enjoy the chapter and PLEASE REVIEW!!!

Part II: Life In America

Ch. 5- The Academy

The representative sat in the kitchen hugging a mug of coffee, the team fanned out around him. The young man was clearly trying to get his wits about him. There was nothing remarkable or outstanding about him that would label him as a wizard. He was tall and skinny, the type of skinny that suggests rapid growth, and his hair and eyes were a mousy brown. "So, you are…" The man fumbled with a piece of paper, "uhm…Mr. Xavier?"

"That is correct," Xavier replied, smiling gently.

"Oh. Good. Well, my name's Adrian Swift, nice to meet you. And who here is…Alec?" The man asked.

"Me," Alec replied, holding up his hand.

"Good, good." The man went through his notes. "Well Alec, I'd first like to give you a hearty welcome on your discovery of being a wizard. I know this may be a bit confusing at first-" The young man read.

"Cut the crap," Logan growled, and the young man paled.

"_Logan!"_ Ororo chided.

"Uhhh…okay then." He skipped through his notes. " Wizarding society has been hidden from muggle- that means non-magical- people since the early fifteen hundreds for our society's protection. However what most, uh, non-magical people don't know is that they are often completely surrounded by magic. Take for instance this toaster," Adrian pointed. "If connected to the floo-by messaging system, you could send letters to different magical houses with it. Or for another example," Adrian added wryly, " take the postal system. Any magical letter is immediately port-keyed to the addressed residence."

"So that's why you arrived so shortly," Henry murmured.

"Exactly." The man murmured, and then put the empty coffee cup onto the table. "Now, shall we go on with the tour?"

The Professor looked perplexed. "Of course. But how will we see the Academy while we are still in our home?"

"Oh yeah, skipped that. We'll be traveling by what is called a 'portkey'. A portkey is a spelled object that when activated brings you to a certain destination." The boy pulled out an empty soda can. " Now everybody has to touch the can, and yes it's a portkey, for the thing to work. You don't have to touch much of it for it to work; the tip of a finger will do. Now come round," The young man instructed.

The mutants bunched around the soda can and touched their fingers to the object. "everyone ready?" Adrian asked.

"All good," Scott replied.

And with that Adrian tapped the can. The whole group experienced what felt like a massive tug, and then they were landing in a jumble on a bunch of pillows. Adrian alone was able to keep from falling, and even he had a hard time being so crowded by mutants.

"Welcome to the Academy," Adrian said, smiling as he delicately stepped out of the jumble and onto hard ground. The group had landed in a large, spacious room with dark cherry wood paneling and a polished checkerboard wood floor. A enormous chandelier hung from the ceiling. The room was interspersed with clumps of pillows which evidently secured other visitors a safe landing as well.

"Everyone ready then? Follow me." Adrian lead them out the door into what looked like the main entrance, as marked by the set of humongous arched double doors. The room was similarly decorated with dark wood and chandeliers, but the now the floor was done in black and white marble, and the ceiling was intricately painted green and gold. An immense fireplace stood proud in the back, and directly in the middle of the room was a lavish staircase. The whole room itself was unique in the fact that it was curved.

A woman sat at what looked like a reception desk called them over."Hello Adrian." The woman asked briskly. "And these people are?"

"The Xavier group," Adrian responded.

The woman looked over her ledger. "Alright then. Here's your passes. Start on the fourth floor by floo, we've been rather busy today."

The mutants tooks their visitor passes and clipped them on as Adrian lead them over to the immense fireplace. "You're actually rather lucky we don't have to walk the whole way up the lighthouse," Adrian said offhandedly. "It's really a pain to do otherwise, especially since we have our own private floo network."

"We're in a_lighthouse_?" Dr. McCoy asked, surprised.

"Yes. It wasn't originally this size, but it didn't take too much work to enlarge it into it's current proportions. And it was completely refurbished as well, once it was converted into a school."

The boy grabbed a handful of powder from a jar on the mantle. "Now, if you'd please follow me." The boy threw the powder into the grate and a giant green flame appeared. "Everyone in," he called as he stepped into the fire.

"Oh my!" Ororo said, stunned.

"The flame won't hurt us?" Alec asked, surprised.

Adrian sighed."Oh, right. No, it won't hurt you. We're traveling by floo powder, which is just as safe as a portkey." The group piled in tentatively, still surprised that they hadn't been hurt.

"Potions floor!" Adrian called out, and the group whisked away in green flame. They came out in a smaller room, the elaborate spiral staircase in front of them.

"The Academy has a total of thirteen floors, including the basement and the topmost deck. Each floor has a specific use; most of the lower floors are specialzed wings for magical studies. This floor actually houses two, since it's so large. We just flooed to the potions section."

"So Adrian, did you go to school here?" The Professor asked.

"Why yes I did. I actually just graduated with a specialty in Alchemy last summer, but the job market for my area is rather lacking. What with Nicholas Flamel having a the rights on how to make lead into gold, most people aren't interested in alchemy any more. All that left me with was working with _perfume_ and _hair potion_ companies," The man made a face. " Or teaching here, as I am now. I'm the assistant Professor of Alchemy."

"You're a Professor?" Jean asked, clearly disbelieving.

"_Assistant_ Professor," Adrian corrected, looking a bit put off. "To become a true alchemist takes dozens of years. Now, if you would please direct your attention over here, we can watch Professor Helstrom concoct a sleeping potion. Mind yourself not to breath in too deep, there's potion in the air and you'll be out cold for the next hour or so if you're not careful."

The tour went on for a total of three hours, with Adrian showing them through a good portion of the Academy. The mutants followed Professor Swift around in wonderment, time and time again stumbling upon yet another new and incredible thing that Adrian forgot to mention.

The tour finally came to a close, and Alec looked at the Professor with pleading eyes. "Can I please, _please_ go here?" Alec begged. "I promise I'll work hard in the Danger Room when I get back!"

"Yes Alec, I've decided it would be a good idea for you to attend at the Academy," The Professor said. Alec jumped up and down in happiness. "However, you will still have to go to normal school."

Alec caught himself mid-jump, his face falling. "_What_?"

"I suppose summer school _would_ be the best solution," The Professor murmured to himself as Alec glowered. "I'll settle that as soon as possible."

Xavier turned to Adrian."Thank you for the tour, Professor Swift. I would be grateful if you notified your headmaster that Alec will be attending the Academy this fall."

"Of course," Adrian smiled, happy to hear about Alec's attendance.

"And now, if I beg your pardon, how do we go back home?" The Professor asked.

"_This_, I remembered," Adrian said, pulling the coffe mug from earlier out of his robes. He handed the mug to the Professor. "I made it a portkey before we left. Once more now, everyone touch the cup!"

The mutants huddled together once more. "Goodbye, and see you this semester!" Adrian said, and then tapped the cup with his wand.

One jolting moment later, the whole team lay sprawled across the kitchen table, the coffee cup lying broken on the floor. There was a loud groan of stressed wood, and then the table collapsed. The team tenderly picked themselves off the floor.

"They've _gotta_ figure out a better way to travel," Logan grumbled.

XHPXHPXHPXHPXHP

The rest of the children's summer was spent in relative leisure, with danger room sessions and summer homwork as the only interruption between hours of rest and relaxation. The kids spent their time hanging out with friends and each other, and finishing up summer homework assignments. Even though Alec wasn't returning to normal school in the fall, the Professor insisted he do it with everyone else to keep sharp. Finally, the last week of summer rolled in.

Anna and Alec always worked on their homework together since they were in the same class. "Alec, what did ya get for question numbah 23? I don't think I did it right," Anna asked, brow furrowed.

Alec sighed. "I don't think mine's right either, but you can take a look," He held out his paper, bored. Alec wanted to be learning magic spells, not algebra.

Anna saw how distracted he was. " Can't wait to go to the Academy, huh?"

Alec looked up, a little startled. "Yeah, pretty much. I mean, all of this seems a little boring in comparison, you know?"

"Ah know," Anna closed the book. "You'll write me when you get there?" She asked, brushing hair out of her face.

Alec looked at her, a little surpried. "'Course. I'd call, but you know how there's no electricity there and all."

"Yeah, I remember. Ahm gonna miss seeing you at normal school," Anna looked away.

In Alec's excitement over going to magical school, he hadn't much thought about what he'd be missing. When was he going to be able to next see everyone at the Academy? He'd become (despite his normal inclination to keep at a safe distance) rather attatched to them. And Anna would be all alone in school without him to watch out for her. Alec's stomach sank.

"I'll miss everyone at home, too, I guess." The statement brought strange feelings to his heart; he had never had a home to miss until now.

Seeing Alec's trepidation, Anna said, "Don't worry about it now, silly. I'm sure you're gonna have fun. Remember to teach me a spell when you come back, kay?" She put on a bright smile just for him.

"I promise," Alec said.

XHPXHPXHPXHPXHP

All too quickly, the summer ended and it was time to go to school. The Academy started two days earlier than the rest of the kid's school so they were able to see Alec off. The adults were not as lucky, however. Currently all of the team except Beast were out on an emergency mission and had to miss sending Alec off.

Mr. McCoy was left to puzzle out the Adacemy's directions to the drop off point. "Well then, this is curious… 'Go to your nearest bus stop and put this paper on the ground in front of you.'" Beast looked at an elaborate drawing on another sheet. "But what on earth will _that_ do? Oh dear." He put the paper on the ground.

The kids stood a few paces back, distractedly watching Henri's confusion. "Where are they?" Alec asked nervously. He didn't want to miss his first day of school.

"Let me finish these directions…They might be strange, but what do I know about magic?" He looked at the instructions. " And now I'm supposed to…draw this line…" Beast carefully drew a line finishing the pentacle in the illustration. Immediately, there was a bright flash of light. The next thing they knew, a not quite normal looking school bus appeared. The bus doors opened to reveal a frizzy redheaded lady beaming down at them.

"All aboard! All aboard!" The lady waved them in, though she still looked busy at the wheel. Mr. McCoy followed by the four awed kids made their way inside.

"Welcome to my magic school bus!" The woman greeted Alec. "I'll be your driver for this evening going on your very first day of Magical Academy. Isn't it exciting?" Indeed, the lady looked just as excited as the small army of parents and children in the rest of the bus- if you could really call it a bus. It had the looks and features of a normal school bus, other than the inside was incredibly large and spacious and the rows went down for what seemed infinity. The front dash board had a series of strange buttons and levers that were all colored and decorated. And during the whole time, it was quite obvious that the bus was _flying _a few thousand meters in the air.

"My my, how curious," Mr. McCoy said. "How in tarnation did you get this thing to fly?" Mr. McCoy asked, awestruck.

"Oh, a little blend of astrophysics and arithmancy can do wonders," The woman chattered gaily. "Look at that! Children, if you would please direct your attention to the right side of the bus you'll see an airplane about level with us! They can't see us, but feel free to wave anyways,"

The bus tilted a little to the side from the weight displacement before compensating and evening out. There were gasps and cheers as the children laughed and waved at the other flying vehicle.

"If you'd excuse me sir, but it's about time you left your little wizard with me," The redheaded lady asked, flipping on the 'goodbye!" info light.

The lady opened the doors, which the mutants now realized were all over, and all leading to different stationary places. The same old bus stop they had just left was awaiting them outside the door.

The group of mutants turned to Alec. "Have a good time at magic school, shorty," Scott said, grabbing him in a half hug, half attack. "I'll miss playing pranks with you on the girls,"

"Scott Summers!" Jean's voice broke out. She gave the boy a disapproving glare as she went up to hug the green eyed boy. "I hope you have a really great time at the Academy and learn lots of magic Alec! See you fall break."

Anna finally nudged up, being coaxed by Mr. McCoy. "Ah guess I'll see ya later, then," Anna looked at her feet, twisting a lock of hair between her fingers.

"Yeah, I guess so," Alec responded. He would miss Anna the most, having been her constant companion for nearly a year. Even leaving Scott wasn't as bad; they had a different type of friendship.

"I'll miss you very much Alec," Beast said. He held open his arms, and Alec ran into them. Alec was sad he wasn't able to say goodbye to Wolverine, the Professor or Ororo.

Alec hugged the furry Professor. "Tell everyone else I'll miss them,"

"Of course," Henri said. He sounded a little choked up.

"Come on now kids, it's time to go," Mr. McCoy ushered the children back through the door. Anna lingered.

"Anna dear, it's time to go now!" Mr. McCoy called from the bus stop.

"Inna minute!" Anna responded. She ran up to Alec. "Well Ah, I wanted to… Oh gosh. I mean, Ah know this ain't the time, but…" Anna blushed.

"Anna? What's going-" Alec stopped mid-sentence as Anna quickly kissed a gloved finger and pressed it to his lips. She smiled shyly, and then ran back out.

Alec stood stunned as he watched the white streaked hair fly out of the bus and disappear from sight as the door closed. And then all there was was the open sky.

"…Anna?" Alec asked, dazed. He felt a little shy and unexpectedly happy, like his birthday had come again.

"Someone's got a cruu-uush," Another boy chanted, laughing at him.

Alec hardly even heard the taunt. 'Anna…_Likes_ me?' He thought. Funny feelings fluttered through his heart.

Meanwhile, the jeering kid continued making fun of Alec. " Someone's in_looo-oove_!" A few kids laughed with him.

"You got a problem with it, big foot?" Alec retorted. The kid shut up, shuffling his substantial feet under the cover of a bench.

"I don't have a problem with it," A girl spoke up, smiling lightly. "I think it's terribly nice."

"Me too!" Another girl chimed in.

"Ugh, girls." Big foot grumbled.

"You can sit with us if you'd like," The first girl called over. "I'm Alana, and this is Jill." Alec gladly slipped in with the girls, feeling rather alone since his family left.

"I'm Alec." He responded. "So when'd you find out you were witches?"

XHPXHPXHPXHPXHPXHP


	6. Chapter 6 Interlude

Hi all! Today's chapter is an interlude, and I'm using it to fill in little extra details and get perspective on other things that are going on in my story and don't have to do with Xavier Mansion. I'm currently working on the next chapter, and will give you this little bit of info: after the next chapter, things are going to _speed up_, not plot-wise but by time frames. Part II is pretty much just a time of peace before the real action starts, and it's quickly coming to an end. I plan to have my story really go into action when Harry/Alec is 16-17.

And to my reviewers:

Thanks for reviewing, Nercia Genisis. And yes, it was the magic school bus. Call me crazy, but she's the original magical teacher! I'm seriously thinking of randomly throwing her in as a hardcore natural sciences muggle studies prof!

Ladykind- Thanks for bringing up things I didn't even think about. Now I've got a few more little plot bunnies to add to my story! I think I definitely want to work in Lupin and Black, and you've already semi-seen Harry/Alec's mutant powers. I haven't thought far enough in the plot to decide if Rogue learns how to touch, but I promise you there's a surprise awaiting in her storyline!

Skyrogue: No sweat, don't worry. People still didn't review much anyway, so I'm pretty much resigned on that front, but happy you did review! I'm glad you like my story so far, I hope I keep it fun and entertaining.

SouthernLoner- Thanks! And yeah, I am making it ridiculously cute right now. Ah, young love…

Kalacyn- As to changing Harry a lot, I know, I am. But it's necessary for my plot line. Don't worry, eventually all will come out and he won't be so 'different' any more. For now I need him to be unrecognizable to the wizarding community, b/c I think Harry Potter would be heard of even in America, if not as well known. And as for what's going on at the English front, you got it! I already had this written, and then you prompt me to get it posted ASAP!

Part II: Life in America

Ch. 6- An Interlude to Part I, and the rest of the Academy letter.

(The Pamphlet)

_What is Magic?_

It is no easy feat to define what Magic is. According to the current Magical Theorem, magic is a uniqe type of energy that is capable of transmuting into a force, entity, or both at the same time. It is inherently produced and manipulated by certain individuals known as Witches (women) and Wizards (men).

_Is My Son/Daughter Really a Magical Person?_

Has anything unexplainable happened around your child before? Our guess is yes. Children with magical abilities have limited control over their powers, but their gifts will sometimes 'flare up' in the midst of extreme emotions. Most children experience what is termed 'magical flaring' at least two to three times during their childhood. The product of their emotionally-induced magical reactions differ greatly from child to child, from landing safely from a fall to floating in the air after a great day.

_Does My Child Need Instruction_?

Due to several unfortunate incedents with untrained witches and wizards, the U.S. Magical Administration (USMA) and the United States Government have each issued laws making Magical Schooling mandatory. If the parent/legal guardian is not capable of paying for tuition, the child will be sent to a Public Magical School of a New York Magical Representative's choice, free of charge. For further details, write a letter to New York Beaureau of Specialties or The New York House of Magic.

_Why go to the New York Academy of Magical Arts?_

The NYAMA is a premier, privately funded Academy that offers the best magical education in America. Voted the #1 Private Magical School in America by U.S. Magic for seven years running, we take great pride in our dedicated staff and bright young students. We offer substantial scholarships for those that qualify and work with parents to make tuition payment more managable. This year we are currently expanding our Asian Magical Studies branch thanks to a grant from the Eastern Society of the Magical Arts, and are in the process of renovating our top tier Transfiguration Department.

_How will I get my child the supplies he needs for the Academy?_

Here at the Academy, we understand that nonmagical parents need all the help they can get to prepare their children for the magical world. Because of this we've set up several clear, simple procedures so you won't have to worry. All necessary materials (AKA robes, books, cauldrons, wands) will be provided to for your child and tailored to their needs.

XHPXHPXHPXHPXHP

Prologue- Part I

(About 3 years prior)

Dumbledore began his daily ritual as he dispelled the protection wards on his chest and opened the lid. Inside it lay a solitary box holding a delicate glass phial filled with a clear, luminescent potion and a single short black hair.

Dumbledore carefully picked up the phial and muttered a spell on it, and the potion turned milky blue. Albus released his breath and smiled grimly, making a silent prayer of thanks as he swished the phial around a bit. The color faded away.

Harry Potter, wherever he was, was still alive. If the potion ever failed to color with the spell, then…Well then all hope would be lost. Albus shuddered at the thought.

It had been a few months since Dumbledore and all of the wizarding world had learned of the aged man's greatest blunder. It had been mid-afternoon on a Tuesday when a twitchy Arabella Figg came through his fireplace going on about how she hadn't seen Harry Potter for days.This was only mildly worrying since Harry had a way of unknowingly throwing off his guardians with remarkable ease, and had given more than one of his guardians a terrible scare.The protection spells were untampered with and strong, so there should have been no problem. However, Albus dutifully asked Kingsley to check in on the boy.

When Kingsley came back the next day with his report, that was when the world crashed around Albus. The auror had disguised himself as a plumber and searched the whole house. He found nothing. He finally asked about Harry, and the Dursleys looked at hims suspiciously and told him no one by that name had ever lived in the house. Suddenly, it became clear: the Durselys had abandoned Harry Potter.

Dumbledore had known that the Dursleys weren't the ideal people to bring up young Harry, but they were his next of kin and blood protection was a powerful defense. He knew there was a chance that Harry would be neglected or improperly mistreated, but Dumbledore had thought it was better to be mistreated than dead. He had never anticipated the mistreament to be so great, however.

Things had gotten out of hand. Dumbledore informed the muggle police of the abandonment, and the Dursleys were arrested, their son put into custody of his aunt. To this day, Vernon and Petunia are still awaiting appeals, which Dumbledore made sure wouldn't happen until Harry was found. It looks like they had a long wait.

The search for Harry Potter began almost immediately after the arrests. Aurors flooded the house, collecting as much of the boy's paraphernalia as they could to make locator spells. However, much of his belongings were thrown out (the majority of their collections came from the garbage) and the aurors had precious little to work with. Meanwhile, the story had been leaked to the press and suddenly everyone knew of the missing Harry Potter.

The race to find Harry Potter became more dire as rogue Death Eaters popped up across the country, wreaking havoc and claiming to have killed Harry Potter. Harry Potter _had_ to be found before Death Eaters found him, if they hadn't yet. Little by little, they burned through Harry's meager possessions to trace him with a locator spell, but the spells simply did not work. They used several different variations of spells, even called in specialist trackers. The boy seemed impossible to trace.

Finally, on a last ditch effort, Dumbledore made the life phial with a potion made by Severus and a short strand of hair from Harry. That alone worked, and began Dumbledore's grim ritual. It became the only hope in what seemed like a vain search- since that fateful day Dumbledore had thousands of agents scouring for the boy all over the British Isles. None of them found even the slightest trace of the boy, now three months later.

Dumbledore sighed, and prayed for the boy's safety. But he had work to do, a new search team to direct, a school to run. Heavily, he lumbered out of his study. It was another day, and Harry was still alive.


	7. Part II: Chapter 7 Anna's Story

Hey everybody, dreamschemer here! So, I wrote a particularly long chapter this time for a few reasons: 1) There was a lot of stuff going on in this chapter, and 2) It's almost finals time and I need all the study time I can get. I won't be writing as frequently, so don't kill me.

And oh oh OH! Was this an interesting chapter. I'm rather happy on the way it turned out- I think really I captured the feelings I wanted to display, for the most part.

To my reviewers:

KoshKing777- Yay! I'm glad you like it! I've also found it hard to come across any really well-written crossover fics, but I can understand. It _is_ pretty hard, and you really have to think about where the story's headed and how the characters would react in the scenario.

Gabbykat13- I may just be able to work Kurt and Anna's relationship in. He'll definitely be a character in part one, which is about a chapter to two chapters away.

SouthernLoner- I'm glad you think it's getting more interesting… This chapter will be a bit of a peak for one character's story for a while. But I've got other plots to work on for other characters, and they'll have their own exciting moments ahead.

Nercia Genisis- mice?! Wtf, mate? And spot on, it was miz friz. I don't know how much of a role she'll play in my story, but I'll try to keep her in there for the fun of it. And Dumbles is a bit silly, but I have sympathy for his character. He was just a well-meaning fellow whose plans went off the deep end. Finally, on theUS magic school figuring out Alec's Harry: I did change his looks for a reason. But don't worry, Thinks'll speed up next chapter.

Whylime- Cool! I'm glad you recognize how much thought has gone into this plot. I've been trying to look at everything from all sides to give it a more realistic feel, but you always miss something. Right now I'm building a hell of a story about Rogue's past, and it'll come into play much later down the line, hopefully. I'm trying to stick to my plan, but at this point I've got much more vague sketches of how the story plays out. I'm working on it, though.

SkyRogue- I'm going to worm Ron and Hermoine into the plot in about two chapters, but before that can happen I have to really settle how I think the hogwarts timeline would go without harry potter. Would ron and hermoine hate each other b/c harry was never there to mediate? Would they not really even be friends because of the whole troll incedents? Or for that matter, did hermoine survive the troll incident? Or would they still end up having crushes on each other despite everything? Also, I'm glad you liked the pamplet and the end of last chapter, I wrote most of that stuff earlier without knowing where to fit it in the story but felt it needed to be in there.

My, my this A/N was longer that usual! Oh well. Oh, and I have a short A/N at the end of this chapter, to explain some things that might not make sense to my good readers. Enjoy!

Part II: Life in America, Chapter 7- Anna's Story

A few days after Alec left for the Academy, Bayville Middle School opened it's doors for the first day of school. The trio went off to their respective classes as Anna got used to middle school. The days passed by quickly as the Mansion went about business as usual. Meanwhile, Alec wrote the Mansion weekly with updates of what was going on and all the magic he was learning. Today's letter was being read out loud by Scott after dinner to the group:

_Hey again everyone,_

_You won't believe what happened today! Remember that sport quidditch I wrote you guys about earlier? Well, I tried out for the school team today because Heather said I was pretty good on the broom, and guess what? I made the team! I'm the second-in-line seeker, which is a really good position for a first year, and the first seeker's going to graduate next year. _

I've been working hard since the last Potions exam, and this time I got an 85 on the test. Potions isn't my favorite subject, but Adrian's been helping me out with my homework. He's really good at potions, 'cause he says it's a neccesary element in Alchemy.

_Other than that, I've been hanging out with Ravi, Seth, and Nikita as usual. Nikita made this really cool picture of a bird that when she spells it, can fly around the room and send a shower of white sparks all over. Sghe gave it to me so I could show it to you guys over break, along with all the other neat stuff I'm bringing home. See you then!_

_Love,_

_Alec_

"Wow! I can't believe that Alec can actually fly," Scott said.

"Ah wanna meet his friend Nikita. That bird she drew sounds cool," Anna enthused.

"Indeed!" Henri said, his Science Times cast aside in favor of Alec's letter. "I wonder what the mechanics are to make an inanimate piece of paper animate…"

"Well, it sounds like Alec's happy to be coming home soon," Ororo commented. "Children, would you help me clean up the dishes?"

"Sure Ororo," Jean sprang up, and carefully managed to pick up the Professor's plate with her telekinesis. The Professor's half-finished plate.

"That's enough for now, Jean. We don't use powers during dinner time" The Professor smiled, catching his plate from the air. Jean sighed and helped collect the dishes.

The group was about to disperse when the the front gate's buzzer went off. _BZZT._ Logan, who had just gotten in from one of his escapades, answered the buzzer.

"Hello?" Logan grunted.

"_Hi there. Is this the Xavier Institute?_"

Logan's brow crinkled. "Yeah,"

"_Can I please speak with Professor Xavier?"_

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Xavier sat behind his desk, stunned. Sitting before him was the person who had rang, a woman in her forties with a rather weather-worn look to her. She had pale, yellow hair that complimented her pale skin, and bright green eyes that would have been beautiful if they weren't so weary.

Seeing the Professor's lack of response, the woman spoke again. "Professor? Professor Xavier…" She paused, deliberated.

"I know this must have come as a great surprise to you. And really, I'm truly thankful that you took such great care of my daughter." Priscilla looked out of the study to where the children were huddled together while Ororo read them The Lion, Witch and the Wardrobe. Even Anna, the topic of their discussion, was out amongst them happily listening to the novel. The Professor watched stonily.

" Yes, we've taken care of her as best we can." He looked at Priscilla a tad sharply. "I take it that you know she is… special, Mrs. DeCourt?"

"I know about her abilites, yes. Her grandmother has something like it. She can tell a person's life story from a touch. All I got was the ability to change my hair color." Her hair went red, then brown, then black, then blonde once more. Priscilla glanced towards her daughter, sadness in her eyes. "Oh, my Anna… I can't belive all the terrible things she went through." Mrs. DeCourt looked down, clearly wrought with emotion.

There was a knock on the door, and Priscilla wiped her eyes. "Come in," Xavier called.

Beast walked in carrying a chart. " Hello there," Henri greeted uneasily, seeing that the woman had clearly been crying. He quietly handed the chart over to the Professor, looking towards him for a cue. "Is this a bad time?"

"Actually Henri, I'd appreciate your company. I'd like you to meet Priscilla DeCourt, Anna's mother." The Beast did a double-take, clearly surprised.

"But according to the files, you…"

"Disappeared? Yes, I suppose I did. I was so rash." The woman shook her head. "I took a hike by myself in the Natchez reservation where I accidentally fell down a ridge. I don't remember much about the incident, but according to the doctors I broke my left leg, a few ribs, and sustained a terrible wound to the head. I was found a day later by the natives, comatose and barely clinging to life. Nobody had a clue of who I was, and I didn't have any identification. So, I suppose I did vanish." Priscilla sighed tiredly. "Last month I was one of the lucky few to wake up. And now, I have to put my life back together."

"So you've come to take Anna back home," Professor Xavier asked, or more like stated. The woman's intentions were obvious.

"I can't believe how my Anna's grown," She replied, tears gushing forth once more. " The last time I saw her, she was just turning three! All I want is to take her back home and become reaquainted with my little girl."

Professor Xavier treaded carefully."I realize how much you must miss your daughter, Mrs. DeCourt A parent should never be separated from their child unless it is of vital importance." He looked at her seriously. "However, at this time I think it may be of vital importance that she stay in our care for a time. You are welcome to stay at the mansion for as long as you'd like. We have already set up a room for you."

Priscilla subtly bristled. " I guessed that you may have grown attatched to my daughter. She is quite charming, isn't she? But no thank you, I'd like to take my daughter home."

Professor McCoy intervened carefully. "Mrs. DeCourt, your daughter has special needs. She has been mentally healing from several traumatic incidents since you were gone, and needs a secure, stable environment where she feels comfortable. Now it wasn't easy, but we cultivated that for her here. Do you honestly want to take your daughter away from this right now?"

"Anna will be happier with her family," Priscilla returned adamantly. "Her grandmother will be able to help her deal with her abilities, and she will be around people who know her and love her. What more can you ask for?"

The Professor exhaled, fingers steepled. " Do you have any plans on how to deal with her mental health? I'm afraid help for mutants is hard to find, and rather expensive. I could send some trusted psychologists to visit her, but it's rather taxing for them to travel so often, and-"

Priscilla now looked thoroughly indignant."_Thank you_ Professor, but money is not an issue. I may have been flower child, but my parents left me quite a hefty inheritance and I intend to use it to Anna's advantage.If you put up _any more resistance_ over returning my daughter, I'm afraid I'll have to take legal action." The woman's eyes were steely, resolute. "I'll see you all tomorrow to pick up my daughter, good bye."

With that, the woman stiffly got up from her chair and moved to leave the room, but the Professor's call stopped her.

"Mrs. DeCourt, forgive us. You were correct in your assertion that we have become rather attatched to your daughter. We only wish to see her happy and well taken care of, and such big changes breeds unpredictability." The woman looked at him moodily, but seemed more open to listen.

"I suppose I can understand that," She relented. " However, I'm still taking my daughter with me."

The Professor nodded somberly as Henri looked on in shock, clearly not liking the outcome. "My only wish is that your family calls on us if you need any assistance with your daughter."

"We will," Priscilla returned evenly.

"And I'm sure everyone would love it if we could get to see her again every once in a while," Beast added quickly, looking upset with the whole ordeal.

Priscilla nodded sharply. "Now if you would, I'd please like to see my daughter."

"Of course," The Professor returned.

With that, Priscilla exited the room. The two mutants watched as the woman came to the bundle of children and Ororo, the book laid aside as Mrs. DeCourt talked. Soon Anna was in the arms of her mother, the rest looking on with surprise and awe.

The Beast turned to the Professor, looking a bit betrayed. " Honestly, I still completely think that Mrs. DeCourt should not take her daughter Xavier. Why are you letting her?"

"Turst me, this doesn't sit well with me either," The Professor responded. "But legally, we have no right to keep Anna with us, even with her special needs." The Professor sighed. "The best we can hope for is that Mrs. DeCourt brings Anna to us when she needs help, and I intend to make that option as hospitable as possible."

Beast nodded morosely as Ororo came in, incredulous. "Anna's _mother_? What is going on?"

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"Wow. I can't believe your mom actually found you," Scott said abruptly later that day as the trio watched _The Jungle Book_.

"Ah know," Anna responded. She'd been really happy about it earlier that day, but for some reason she just felt…bummed.

Jean found the whole thing heart-warming. "The whole story's so touching! After all that time and that terrible accident, and the first thing she does is try to find you." Jean smiled. "She must love you so much."

"Yeah, ah guess so." Anna returned.

"Something bothering you Anna?" Scott asked indifferently, hugging a pillow to himself.

"No… Yeah- ah mean no. Alright, maybe," Anna said. "Mah feelin's are just so jumbled up right now, ya know?"

Jean nodded sympatheticallly. " Of course. This all must seem so new to you, to meet your mother and then go to live with her the very next day." Seeing Anna's mood perceptibly darken, she quickly followed up: "But I bet it'll be great. I bet your whole family will adore and dote on you, and you'll get lots of gifts and a party!"

Anna cheered up a little. "Yeah, that's nice. ..But I'll have to leave y'all at the mansion, too." And her face fell again.

Scott looked away coldly. "Ugh, I can't believe you! Just be happy you _have_ a mother that cares for you," Scott threw his pillow on the floor and left.

Jean looked abashed as Anna rolled over and stuck her face into the couch, trying to bite back tears. "I'm sure he didn't mean it Anna…" Jean said, patting Anna's back.

"Don't' _touch me_," Anna snapped, trying to cover up the sobs.

"I'm sorry…" Jean sniffled. Anna said nothing. A minute later, she heard the petite psychic leave the room.

'Stupid Scott,' Anna thought to herself, brushing tears out of her eyes. The only problem was, she knew he was right- she should be happy. Anna had always dreamed of her parents mysteriously appearing and whisking her off, and now that it was happening she didn't know how she felt about it. She honestly liked living at Xavier's Mansion; she had been well-treated, well fed, and had even made friends, a thing which she'd never had previously. She was happy here.

She wouldn't even get to say goodbye to Alec, she realized desolately. Alec was due to come back to the Mansion for break in three days, and she'd be long gone by then. He wouldn't be able to teach her magic, after all.

Anna heard heavy footsteps and peeked up to see Logan coming in the room. She buried her face into pillows once more. "Hey there darlin'," Logan's bristly voice sounded muffled through the pillows. Anna felt the couch dip as the man sat down next to her.

" Anna, would you look at me?" He asked tiredly. Anna shook her head. "Thought so," He grunted. "I heard one-eye gave you trouble."

Anna didn't want to talk about it, so she didn't.

"I know all this news must be a bit of a shock for you," Logan continued. "and for a while you might feel upset, and you might feel a li'l sad."

Despite not looking up, Anna listened. " All I wanna tell you is, with time things'll settle again and you'll be just as happy with your mama as here in the Mansion. And if you aren't, you call us any time to tell us about it, alright?"

"alright" Anna mumbled into the pillow, sniffling.

"Now would you please sit up stripes?" Logan asked, his voice the closest to being sweet as she'd ever heard.

Anna finally sat up, still wiping at her eyes and looking away. Logan seemed haooy enough with that. "C'mere," He growled playfully, and carried her to her room.

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Mrs. DeCourt came back early the next day with an elderly woman, a puppy, and to the whole Mansion's consternation, a police officer.

Logan answered the door despite having a hard time keeping from growling. "Mrs. DeCourt," Wolverine greeted tersely.

"Ah, you must be Logan," Priscilla greeted breezily. "Pleasure to meet you. This is Irene Adler, Anna's aunt, and Officer Steelers."

"He related to Anna as well?" Logan questioned.

Priscilla laughed. "Oh dear me, no! He's just here to make sure things go smoothly. Logna's face darkened at this. "Oh, and would you give this to Professor Xavier?"

Logan inspected the envelope, looking at the woman suspiciously. "It's just a little document my lawyer wrote up, nothing much. So, where's my daughter?"

Logan lead the three into the living room, where the mutants were waiting for them. Anna was sitting amongst the adults, her massive suitcase in front of her.

"Oh, Anna my sweet pea!" Priscilla barreled down on her daughter, giving her a big hug. "How are you doing on your big day, hm?"

Anna subtly pushed her mother off, uncomfortable with the amount of physical touch both instinctually and due to the fact that she didn't know the woman all too well. "Ahm fine," She said modestly, trying her best not to let her sadness show.

"Good, good. Well, we better get going: our flight is in an hour and a half!" Priscilla announced gaily, and took Anna's bags out to the car.

Anna turned towards her old family. "Well, ah guess this is it," She said pensively.

Ororo was the first one to speak. "We'll miss you Anna," The weather witch said, carefully embracing her. Anna hugged her back, and it was all she could do to stop the tears from flowing.

"Ah'll miss you, too," Anna buried her face in Storm's shoulder, tears coming back anew.

" Now now, this is no time to cry," Beast said to her, though he himself was choked up.

"Beast," Anna turned to hug the fluffy blue mutant. " Thank ya for watching out for me all this time," She said, and the man did start to cry.

"Remember what I said yesterday," a voice called to her, and she went over to Logan. "Ah remember," She said tearfully.

"That's a girl," He said gruffly, encasing her in a solid hug.

"Jeannie," Anna siad, seeing the redhead beside her. "I'm sorry about yesterday."

"Really, it's fine," The girl responded. The telekinetic took Anna's gloved hand, and shook hands. "We never did it properly before," She laughed sadly. "Here," Jean said as she floated a photo album into Anna's hands. "We all worked together to make it. If you ever feel alone, just flip through that and I know you'll feel better."

Anna impulsively hugged the redhead, biting her lip against the tears. "Thank you Jean."

Anna turned to Scott. "Look, Anna…" He looked away. "I'm really sorry for what I said yesterday. I guess I was just… jealous. And I didn't mean it, I mean-" Anna shut him up with a quick embrace.

"Ah know you didn't," Anna murmured over his shoulder. "Ah reckon I'd react just like you did, if I was in your shoes."

"So you forgive me?" Scott asked timidly. Clearly, he had been beating himself up over the comment.

"Forgiven," Anna smiled tearily. "An' Scott, could you give this to Alec, an' tell him I say goodbye?" Her voiced cracked a little at this.

"Of course," Scott answered, and carefully tucked it away.

Finally, there was only one person left to farewell. Anna looked at the Professor, who had made everything possible. He was the man that found her, that got her out of the hell that was the psych ward, that soothed her nightmares and cleared her mind. She owed this man so much, that walking towards him, she didn't know how to express her gratitude.

"Okay! Done! We're all packed up. Anna, are you ready?" Priscilla called.

"Inna 'nother minute, mama," She responded, and Priscilla gushed with happiness at being called 'mama'.

"Alright dear. I'll be waiting outside," Mrs. DeCourt left.

Anna looked at her mentor. "Professor," She said, at a loss.

"My dear Anna," He said paternally, and in a moment of uncharacteristic emotion, cradled the girl in his arms..

"Thank ya for everything," Anna cried into his shoulder.

"Thank you for being such a wonderful young lady," He responded, patting her head. " If you ever need anything Anna, we're all just a call away."

"Anna! We have to go!" Mrs. DeCourt's voice rang through the building.

Reluctantly, Anna let go. "Ahm comin'!" Anna called back. She looked back onto the X-Men. "Well…Goodbye!" And with that, she ran out the door.

The X-Men crowded the front staircase as they watched the three pile up into the car, and the officer load into his police car. They waved until the cars were out of sight. "I hope everything turns out well for her," Ororo sighed. "She deserves a little happiness."

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Anna entered the car to find someone else already sitting inside it. She looked towards the her mother and aunt. "Mama, Auntie Irene, who's this?" She looked at the man and shivered. He didn't look very nice.

"Anna, this is one of my associates, Mr. Wyngarde." she returned as she pulled away from the mansion.

"Oh,' she returned as she waved at the X-Men. Once they were out of sight, Anna turned back towards him.

"Hi, nice to meet you," The Professor's lectures on manners had stuck, apparently.

"Isn't she a dear," Mr. Wyngarde returned, his voice oily. Anna couldn't help but be repulsed.

Mrs. DeCourt locked the doors. " Alright, Mesmero. Here's half the money. You'll get the other half when it's done."

"Done? When what's done?" Anna was starting to get panicky. She didn't understand what was going on, but had a feeling that whatever it was, it was bad.

"And leave the memories of me being her mother," Priscilla continued, ignoring Anna's questioning, "Though I want her to remember me how I really look."

Blond hair gave way to a violent red, as the bright green eyes transformed into yellow. Pale, light skin much like Anna's morphed into a deep, scaly blue. Anna was terrified. "What's going on? Please let me go!" Anna tried to open the door, there was no way to unlock it.

"As you wish, Mystique."Mr.Wyngarde turned towards Anna. "Anna, young Anna, don't you want to _sleep_?"

Anna didn't want that at all, but inexplicably her eyes started drooping, and she felt warm and hazy. "No…stop doin' that…" She fought to stay awake. "Help me…_Professor_!"

With that last cry, her mind jerked and she fell into a deep sleep.

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Two days later, Alec was picked up by Beast and brought home. "Hi guys, I'm back!" He called into the common room, where Jean and Scott were going over their homework with Ororo.

"Hi Alec," Jean said as the three came up to hug him. However, none of them seemed terribly happy.

Logan and the Professor came into the room soon after to greet him. "Welcome back home, Alec," The Professor greeted, giving him an unusually tight hug.

"it's good to be back! You should see all the things I was learning there, and man! Seth has this special camera that takes moving pictures, and took some of me flying, and, and," Alec stopped talking abruptly, surprised at how quiet they all were.

"What's up with you guys? You're all acting like the family puppy died, or something." They all looked uneasy at this. "Hey, and where's Anna?" Alec had gotten her a special present at Nikita's urging- a locket that, when opened, played the person's favorite song and showed their favorite person. Alec knew it was a little silly, but he hoped that when she wore it, the picture would show him.

"Alec, while you were gone Anna came across some good news," The Professor said. From the sad look on his face however, it didn't look like the news was in any way good."Anna's biological mother came to the Insititute."

"Cool! When can I meet her? Does she look like Anna? Does she have powers?" Alec asked excitedly.

The Professor sighed. "Perhaps, yes. But you see, Anna and her mother already left for their home in Mississippi."

"What?" Alec stood, stunned. "You-you mean, she's gone?" Alec asked, his voice quavering.

"I'm afraid so," The Professor answered quietly.

"Why didn't I know?!" Alec nearly shouted as he turned away, blinking away the moisture in his eyes.

"It only came to our awareness three days ago," The Prfoessor responded. "We couldn't reach you in time."

"Is she coming back?" Alec asked, still facing away from the group.

The Professor sounded uneasy. "We hope so,"

Alec couldn't believe it. "That means no, doesn't it?" he said.

"Alec, we're not sure…" Ororo spoke up.

Alec turned and ran up to his room. "Wait! Alec!" Scott called. The older boy followed him into his room, where Alec had holed up in a corner. "Alec, Anna told me to give you this." Alec took the letter, and in a bout of anger threw it across the room.

"Leave me alone!" He yelled, and Scott quietly backed off. It was a few minutes later when Alec scrambled over to the letter, and tenderly picked it up from the ground. An edge was a little crinkled and bent, but it was otherwise in perfect shape. Alec laid down on his bed and he read it, and reread it, and reread it. He finally went to sleep as the sun was just coming up.

A/N- If anyone was wondering how Logan couldn't sniff out Mystique, it's because in this story they've never met before. You can't tell that someones and evil, terrorist bitch until you met them in action, right?

And about the mean terrorist bitch: I've seriously been wanting to write a little vignette about Mystique and her twisted, twisted mind. I think it'd be pretty interesting, but don't know if it really has a place in this story. So I want you guys to tell me: vignette on Mystique, yay or nay? Review and tell me.

Thanks,

dreamschemer


	8. Part II: Chapter 8 Five Years Later

Hi again!!! So, I survived all my finals and finally posted another damn chapter. I got this out later than I expected because on top of having tests, my computer stopped charging, and I had to repair the thing. So, sorry about all the delays.

Other than that, let me (as usual) give a little preface to this chapter. As the title indicates, this chapter takes place five years in the future from the last chapter, and calls for a lot of integration. So don't kill me if the chapter seems to meander a little.

In this chapter I'm trying to give a good picture of what life is like in Alec's world versus Harry's world. There are some similarities and some differences. Harry/Alec's still good at what he was in the original timeline since talent doesn't change. His friends are different, and I tried to portray them as best I could while juggling a host of new characters to the plot. Xavier's team went under some serious expansion in thi chapter as well, so yet again excuse me if the characters aren't developed. And on top of it all, I'm furthering the plot.

Please tell me what you think of this chapter. I had a hard time writing it due to the amount of information I had to cram in it, and am not sure how well I pulled it off. Is it good, bad, or needs work?

As for the vignette, there was a general consensus that if I wanted to/ could write it, I could, but don't put it in this story. Cool, I agree, and truthfully with all that's going on, I don't know if I'll have time. I'm going to Panama over break, and don't know how much time I'll have to write new chapters! So, sorry in advance??

As for my reviewers:

SkyRogue- I'm glad you liked my twist to the story! This specific cliffy isn't going to resolve itself for a good few chapters, but I promise it won't be left unresolved. There's just other things that have to be done to set the stage.

mrmistoffelees- Thanks, I hope to keep things interesting. I agree with the whole vignette thing.

beast93boy- Thanks! I'm trying to keep this thing together.

whylime- "Its just kills me when Mr. All-tough-on-the-outside reveals his soft nougaty center" LOL. Best reviewer quote ever! I thought I did a good job on that scene, thanks. It was pretty hard to make Logan nice and, well, Logan, at the same time.

SouthernLoner- Cool! Here's the next chapter, hope you enjoy!

Nercia Genisis- I do all my x-men/ harry potter info scouting on wikipedia, and apparently Rogue's real family was revealed in one of the comics. I decided to work with that storyline, where Rogue's real mother is named Priscilla, and her father (who left them) was Owen. No last name was given, so I made up a southern/louisiana last name.

KoshKing777- I'm glad you liked the chapter! And really shouldn't give things away, but… I have a feeling she'll get the gift.

darknessmolded- Neither can I, but I think she's an interesting character. If you were a shape-shifting mutant, wouldn't you turn into a manipulative bitch too?

angelkitty77- I'm glad you like my story! I've had a really great time writing it, and I'm glad you are all enjoying it!

So, here goes:

Part II: Life in America, Ch. 8- Five Years Later…

"Hey Alec! Good luck on the match, man!"

"Thanks!" Alec responded to a classmate as he half-dashed towards the locker room. When he finally made it there, he found his long-time friends Nikita and Seth waiting for him.

"You forgot your armpads again, genius," Seth said, lightly hitting him over the head with said garments. "And knowing you, you'll need them."

"Hey! I fly just fine," Alec said, laughing.

Nikita sighed. "I know you fly well, but Quidditch is such a dangerous sport! Could you plee_ease_ wear this helmet I got you Alec?"

"Umm…" Alec pleadingly looked for help from Seth.

" You know Nikita, I think there's rules on having matching uniforms…" Seth supplied as Alec dashed off.

"See you guys later!" He said as he ran into the changing room.

"But you didn't take your helmet!" Nikita called after him.

Alec ignored the comment as he barreled over to his locker.

"Xavier, you're late again!" Coach Edmond looked at him, irritated.

"Sorry sir, I was caught behind during class talking to Professor-"

"Just get changed! The team's waiting on you in the front,"

"Yessir!" Alec began throwing on his equipment in record time. Hearing the announcer begin, he paled as he grabbed his Nimbus, and fighting to get the last shoe on, hobbled into the opening tent.

" –_HERE COMES IAN CLAYAND DANIEL BROWN, BEATERS FOR THE NYAMA TEAM!"_Alec straightened up his uniform as the team beaters flew out of the tent, and Rebeka lined up after them. Alec quickly jumped behind her.

"Good to see you finally made it," Beky said as Alec nervously brushed his hair out of his face.

"You know I would Beka," He quipped back as her name was called. "Good luck!"

"You too!" She called back as she flew out of the tent.

"_AND LAST COMES NYAMA SEEKER, ALEC XAVIER!"_ With his cue, Alec flew out of the tent and into the field, the sound of cheering almost deafening him.

It was the last day of school at the Academy, and the whole school was in an uproar of excitement. Today Alec and the rest of the Academy team would be playing their rival school, Wyvern Insititute of Magic, for the championship. It had been seven years since the team had even made it to the finals, so everyone was pumped for the big game. On the other hand, Alec hadn't been this nervous since he'd first started playing for the team; he was keenly aware of how much was riding on his skills today. And Alec had reason to worry: WIM's seeker was a small, thin brunette with a 11-0 record for catching the snitch. The rest of the team was just as good, with a lightning fast team of chasers and a seasoned keeper. Their beaters were relatively fresh, however, a fact that Alec would exploit to the fullest extent.

Alec did a few loops, trying to find his girlfriend, Kiley. She was easy to identify- as one of the few girls with strawberry blond hair, she was easy to pick out in a crowd. She was sitting in the front row on the NYAMA bleachers toying with her hair as Alec flew by and blew a kiss at her. She beamed and waved back as her group of friends gave a collective envious sigh.

The team took their positions on the field as Coach Ed released the snitch. Flying lower, grabbed the quaffle and threw it up in the air with a whistle.

Immediately the game was in action. NYAMA's main chaser Dana lost the tip off, but the ball was quickly reclaimed with a swift bat by Dan. Alec watched momentarily before flying higher up to hover over the field, falling into full seeker mode.

"I heard about you, Xavier" Alec was startled to find the WIM seeker hovering fifteen feet away from him, her eyes set in a determined scowl. " You're good, Xavier, but not good enough for me."

Alec rolled his eyes. "Right. Whatever. Can we just, I don't know, PLAY the game and-"

Alec cut off mid-sentence as he followed the girl in a plummeting nosedive towards the ground. 'She saw it already?!' Alec thought, pushing his broom on faster. At the last second, the girl pulled up and flew away. Alec realized he'd been tricked, and just barely pulled out of the dive in time, scraping the bristles in the dirt as he veered back upwards.

"Okay there Xavier?" Ian asked, concerned.

"Yeah. Girl's tricky though, got my attention and pulled a feint on me," Alec said, a little embarrassed. He rarely got caught in those ploys.

"Just keep your mind on the game man," He replied, but his eyes were elsewhere. "Gotta go."

Alec pulled back up to to his usual hawking position once more to find the girl twenty feet away from him, already searching the skies intently. Seeing him come up, she commented, "Too bad," looking at his muddy broomstick. The tail end was lagging from hitting ground.

Alec chose to ignore her comment, giving her a choice gesture as he turned his eyes to the sky.

The time passed quickly with little action for the seekers, however the rest of the team had a rather intense game going on. The chasers were having a heated battle over possession of the quaffle, and the playing was so fast paced that often the quaffle would be in a chasers hand for only moments before being passed or stolen. The WIC chasers were a little better than the Academy's, but with their novice beaters were being beaten back rather efficiently.

The other seeker, Goldstein, as the banner on the back of her t-shirt read, tried another feint but Alec didn't fall for it again.

The game hovered in near standstill for close to an hour when one of the other team's chasers played a foul. Right after Dana scored a shot on goal, she turned around just in time to watch something golden flicker by in the periphery.

"_ALEC_!!" She shouted, but both seekers were already shooting past her in chase of the elusive ball. Both teams' beaters flew out to follow the two as the chasers continued after the quaffle, their gameplay slowing down as they watched to see what happened.

The snitch was currently flying directly toward one of the keeper poles, which was making Alec uneasy. He made a little to the left, hoping to grab it just before it struck, when Goldstein slammed into him and rammed him off course, taking his previous position. Alec spun and looped to the other side and made for a grab at the same time as the other seeker, but the snitch had already looped away and shot straight upward. Alec, already turning upwards a little, was able to make a quicker chase after it. Goldstein followed quickly after however, since Alec's broom was shaking a little with drag.

Even with the drag, Alec was much closer to the snitch. He made for the grab but just missed, the snitches wings brushing past his hand as it dropped like a stone for fifty feet and then shot off into the quaffle gameplay.

The other players tried to move out of the way as much as possible as Alec and Goldstein raced after the golden ball. This time she had the upper hand, and was slowly gaining on the ball. She nearly caught it when a chaser accidentally flew in her path and she veered off a bit, giving Alec a few precious seconds to catch up.

The two were now nose to nose as the snitch made a backwards loop, making for some awkward flying. Goldstein made a grab for it, but flying upside down and backwards made her unsteady and she missed. The snitch veered a little to the side.

Then, in rapid succession, three events occurred: Alec caught the snitch, he got a blinding pain on his forehead, and what felt like a boulder came in contact with his skull. Alec lost conciousness.

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The next thing Alec knew, he was laying down in something soft. The sterile, sanitary smell of cleaning potion invaded his nose. Alec groaned softly: he was in the medical office.

"…still bet he wouldn't have wanted to wear it anyways. He's always been a daredevil, 'Kita, you know that."

"Well, it would have saved him a lot of pain! Did you see how far he dropped? I'm just glad Ian was there to catch him before he hit ground."

Alec's muddled brain tried to decipher the sounds he was hearing, but his forehead was throbbing like he'd just faceplanted into a brick wall. He opened his eyes, and when bright lights invaded, closed them once more with a pained groan.

"Alec? Hey dude, Alec, you alright?" It was Ravi, Alec faintly recognized as he cupped his forehead.

"…painkillers." Alec mumbled.

"Oh yeah, one second. Healer Rhodes, Alec's awake!" Alec still wasn't brave enough to open his eyes yet, but listened as his friends shuffled out of the way when Rhodes came over.

"Here," the Professor pushed a phial into his hands. "Drink up."

Alec didn't pause as he swigged the whole thing in one go despite the taste. He'd gotten used to it after the fourth trip to the medical office. After a few moments, the pain was lessening and life seemed more manageable. Alec tentatively opened his eyes to see his three best friends, girlfriend, and a mildly peeved healer.

"Alec, thank good ness you're alright!" Kiley cried, gently squeezing his hand. "You had a pretty bad fall, you know."

"I guess so," He said miserably, and began rubbing his forehead. "Ow!"

"I wouldn't do that if I were you," Professor Rhodes said as he ran a diagnostic test. "You still have a concussion, so I suggest you four keep him up for the next few hours."

"Sure thing, Professor." Seth returned.

"And Alec, I'm disappointed. You promised me you wouldn't be in here for at least another three months." Healer Rhodes said, looking at him disapprovingly.

"Um, sorry, I tried?" Alec returned.

"You would have 'tried' to stay safe by wearing a helmet, as I suggested last time," He returned. "And for next season, you're going to be wearing it, doctor's orders."

"But Professor!" Rhodes gave him a stern glance. "Fine, fine." Alec sulked. The healer walked off to another sickbed.

"Rough, Al," Alec glared at the nickname as Ravi went on, "Well, at least you still caught the snitch."

"Wait, I did?!" in his pained haze, Alec had forgotten all about quidditch.

"Yeah! You held onto that thing even though you were unconcious! Took a few shots to pry it from your hand. As we speak the whole school's setting up the victory party. The rest of the team is waiting to be let in since Prof. Rhodes doesn't want you to be crowded until you can stand" Ravi supplied.

"_Yes_!!!" Alec shouted happily. "Then what are we waiting for? Let's go party!" He cried, quickly jumping out of bed- and immediately falling down.

Seth was able to grab him just before he hit the floor "Whoa, slow down there Alec. You don't want to get another cut on your head, do you?"

"Another one?" Alec tentativly touched his forehead again, feeling the bandage over his fresh wound.

"I swear, you look just like Harry Potter with that cut on your head," Kiley joked.

"…Harry _who_?" Alec asked groggily.

The four gave a collective sigh. "Alec, you _really_ have to keep up on your European Magical History readings," Nikita said wryly.

Healer Rhodes, standing nearby, looked over sharply.

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The party went on well into the night as they celebrated their win first in the gymnasium, and then sneaking out to the cove later where they celebrated once more, the whole team personally toasting with shots of Ogdens'. The party was finally broken up at four when the Transfiguration Professor wearily told them to be in their beds in ten minutes or they'd all be toads.

Alec finally woke at some ungodly hour with a minor hangover. Nikita had slept over with Seth as usual(they had been dating for years- and NO, they didn't do anything), while Ravi was missing. Chester was conked out as usual.

Looking at the clock, Alec nearly flipped his shit. "GUYS! GET UP! IT"S TEN FORTY-FOUR!"

Chester ungracefully fell out of bed as Seth hit his head on the bunk above and Nikita covered her head with a pillow. Alec however was already stumbling around grabbing clothes.

"I don' wan' it to be Sunday," Nikita mumbled, still clearly half asleep.

"Neither do I, but We've got to make a good impression on you folks, right?" Seth said nervously as he tiredly grabbed his newly pressed dress pants out of his closet.

"Oh no, my _parents_!" Nikita ran out of the room. She quickly ran back in. "Seth, where's my hair band?!"

Seth tossed the item over to her and she dashed off again.

"Man, you guys are loud," Chester finally said as he slowly picked himself off the floor. "Ughh… Gonna shower."

"Hold up! Let me get in there first, I'll only take a second," Seth called over.

"Eh, snooze you lose." Chester called back, slamming the bathroom door closed.

"Asshole," Seth grumbled as Alec dashed back into the common room half dressed, grabbing a pair of socks. "Alec, you done with the shower?"

"Go for it," Alec said, tugging on his dress shoes.

"Thanks man," he said as he ran into the bathroom. But Alec was already out the door.

The Alec finally made it down into the dining hall just in time to sit down for brunch. He quickly spotted the whole X-team, who was taking up one of the large oval dining tables all by themselves. "Hey guys!"

"Alec!!!" There was a sound akin to a small stampede as everyone got up from their chairs to greet him.

"How've you been doing, bro!" Scott called, grabbing him in a playful headlock.

"Mind the shirt, I just ironed it!" Alec said, batting his brother away.

"Alec, how are you?! And what happened to your head?" Jean asked, giving him a hug.

"I've been great, and I had accident."

"Again?" Jean asked suspiciously.

"They happen," Alec brushed it off as someone clapped him on the shoulder.

"Evan! What's up, man?" Alec asked, lightly giving the mutant a playful punch.

"What's up with _you_?" Evan returned. "There's some hot blond who says she's your girlfriend," He ribbed.

"Uhh, yeah," Alec said, scratching his head as Kitty phased right through the crowd and hugged him.

"ALEC!!!" She near screamed, giving him a big hug.

"Hey Kit- gotta breathe, gotta breathe!" She released him just in time for Kurt to hug him.

"My friend, how vaz your year?"

"Pretty cool. These are all the new recruits?" He asked as he looked around the table.

"Ja," Kurt returned. "Zey wanted to see the Academy for themselves."

Alec waved at the unfamiliar group of mutants. "Well, um, hi!" The group timidly waved back. "I'll, uh, be back in a second."

Alec then went over to the teachers. "It's good to see you again, my boy," Dr. McCoy said. Alec smiled and gave him a hug. "Good to see you too,"

"Am I not invited?" Ororo joked, and Alec pulled her in for the hug as well.

"Looks like you made it on time," Logan growled, and Alec turned to face him.

"'Course," The two stared each other down until Alec decided to ruin it and hugged Logan. "It's great to see you Wolverine,"

"Good to have you back. I hope you haven't gotten rusty over the school year, though." Alec groaned at that.

Alec finally turned around to find Professor Xavier patiently waiting for him. Alec beamed as he went over to hug the older mutant. "Hi Professor. I've missed being home."

"Welcome back," The Professor returned fondly as he embraced one of his first students. " I've heard that some congratulations are in order."

" Yeah! We heard that your quid- quididt- oh! Well, we heard that your magic team won the title." Kitty said as they all sat down to start eating.

"Yeah, we got first place in Quidditch," Alec supplied. "It was a really close game though, and really exciting."

"So exciting that you fell off your broom I gather?" Ororo commented wryly.

"Hey!" Alec grumbled as the team laughed.

Alec got to know the new recruits better over brunch before there were a series of speeches and demonstrations done by the Professors. Finally the ceremony ended, and Alec ran over to say goodbye to his friends.

Alec found Nikita and Seth a few tables down. Nikita looked anxious but hopeful, while Seth looked like warmed death."Hey guys," Alec greeted. "How did the whole 'parents' thing go?"

"I-I'm rather surprised, really," Nikita answered, biting her lip. "They were actually pretty nice to him, and approve of him aspiring to become a healer." She smiled. "I've got to go tell Kaitlin!" She ran off.

"Seth…You alright there?" Alec asked timidly.

The boy exhaled a deep breath."If they were being nice, I'd _hate_ to see them being mean."

"Owch. That bad?"

"That bad," Seth returned gravely.

"Well, I'll see you two this summer?" Alec questioned.

"Definitely! I've gotta check out that battle room-thingie you've got there again!"

Alec laughed. "Sure, no problem. Hey, I gotta find Ravi, see you later?"

"Cool, later."

Alec scoured the room before finding Ravi at his table of all places, flirting with Kitty. "Ravi, cut it out," Alec said exasperatedly.

"What?!" Ravi shot back. "I'm just talking with your resident hottie, so sue me." Kitty giggled at this as Alec rolled his eyes.

"So you're still coming to my place this summer?" Alec asked.

"Most definitely," He returned, looking not at Alec but Kitty. Alec shook his head; he couldn't deal with Ravi when he was in 'player' mode.

Alec was about to say goodbye to the dueling team when Headmistress Lin walked over with Professor Xavier. "Alec, may we have a moment to talk?"

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Alec and Professor Xavier followed the Headmaster to her office. "Professor, what is this about?" Alec questioned. "Am I in trouble?"

"I'm not quite sure, to tell the truth," Xavier returned. On a second thought, he added,"_Are_ you in trouble?"

Alec didn't know how to respond to this without getting into more trouble, so remained silent.

"Please, if you'd both take a seat," Headmistress Lin offered. The two sat down."I'd like to ask a few questions about Alec's past and upbringing. Some information has come to light which makes me…inquisitive"

"We have always treated Alec with the greatest consideration and comfort," The Professor responded curiously. "What are you getting at?"

"Alec, were you not adopted by Professor Xavier?" Lin continued.

"Yeah. What about it?" He responded curiously.

"Who took care of you previous to Xavier?"

Alec paused, startled. "I-I don't remember. I was living on the streets of London for a while… But before that, I just… can't remember!"

"Alec, forgive me, that is my fault." Looking at the Professor questioningly, Xavier continued. "Your previous foster family treated you terribly, and I didn't want you to be scarred by their terrible conduct."

"So you _made me forget?!_" Alec asked, anger creeping into his voice.

"I thought it was for the best you forget them until you were older, so I repressed them." The Professor sadly returned. "If you wish, I can return them."

"Return them, then!" Alec said heatedly.

"One name will bring your memories back, Alec. Are you sure you want to remember?"

"Yes," Alec returned vehemently.

"As you wish," the Professor responded quietly. "Vernon Dursley."

The Professor all but whispered the name, yet memories started slowly seeping back into vibrant reality. Recollections of his life as a servant, his mistreatment, sleeping in a cupboard and being locked out of the house bled through his conciousness. Finally, memories of his abandonement, of cold, terrifying nights alone on the street and intense hunger came back to him.

While Alec was struggling to reabsorb his repressed memories, the two teachers continued talking."Did you say _Vernon Dursley_, Professor?"

The Professor looked startled. "Yes, I did."

The Headmistress looked at Alec with incredulity. "Alec, were you once called Harry Potter?"

It took Alec a moment to focus on the Headmasters' question and process it before he answered." Yeah, I was once. But I got rid of that name a long time ago." He paused. "Was Harry Potter famous or something?"

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Alec wasn't able to go to sleep at the mansion later that night. There were too many new discoveries that absolutely boggled his mind

Other than finding out about his represses memories (which now that he remembered them, was grateful that the Professor wiped them from his young eight year old mind), there was so much to take in. Headmaster Lin, not knowing how to handle the situation, assigned him to read all about Harry Potter as the whole team stayed over an extra night. What he'd learned terrified him.

Alec Xavier might have been a fun loving, happy individual, but Harry Potter was not. Harry Potter's parents were murdered, just as he nearly was as well. Harry Potter had a cursed scar from the murder attempt on his life, and had to live with his terrible abusive relatives to insure there wasn't another murder attempt. Harry Potter's parent's killer was a crazy megalomaniac that was bent on killing him, and according to accounts in England, just had resurrected himself. And to make the whole story complete, Harry Potter's nemesis resurrected himself with mutated clone versions of the poor boy after gaining possession of a strand of his hair.

Thus, it was Harry's 'Dark Lord' who caused Alec's intense pain and scar during quidditch.

Alec didn't like this Harry Potter fellow at all.

Like him or not, now _everything_ had changed. Alec couldn't forget that he was once Harry, and this 'Dark Lord' would be actively and efficiently searching Harry out. All his protection in Xavier Mansion counted for little to nothing since they had no magical defense to speak of. And tomorrow, he'd have to fly to England for his own safety and live at some organization's headquarters until the sick b-tard was dead, while they were questioning if the 'Dark Lord' could even be killed.

Alec rolled over on his side and looked out the window. Outside, the sun was just rising over the horzion. It was a new day. But did this day hold any hope?


	9. Part I: Chapter 9 The 'Order' of Things

Yay!!! I updated!

And so I'm back from Panama, which was really cool and fun, with a new chapter to this story. Back from popular demand in this chapter will be the one and only Rogue, though her part is still pretty small at this time. Don't worry, we'll be seeing a whole lot of her in the coming chapters though! I have more to talk about on this chapter, but I don't want to ruin the fun… So I'll finish the rest of my chapterly chat at the end.

To my reviewers:

sable2684- Cool, I'm happy you like my story. And sorry, I haven't followed too much of the other x-men stuff, so I don't know who 'Chamber' is. And YES!!! Someone finally noticed the connection between Harry calling himself Alec, and his uncle calling him a smart alec. I thought it was rather fitting, somehow.

RabidGaaraFan- Ahh, yes. The Sirius issue. Sirius is in this chapter briefly, and the story and reasoning behind that may be a ways off or never come at all. It's pretty hard to tie up all the loose ends in this story, now that so many characters are thrown into the fray.

Wildbookaddict- Uhm, yeah, I didn't mention Anna. Why would I? Remember, everything that transpired around Anna happened five years before. The character Alec still misses Anna, sure, but he's got his own life at this point. He's not thinking about her 24/7.

Dark Thorned Rose- Thanks!!!

Matthew Blackheart- Perfectly stated. Next chapter will get into describing exactly how #$# has hit the fan.

Nercia Genisis- Okay, okay I get it! Rogue's in this chapter, and should be in the next one (unless I have to expand it to the next chapter). But either ways, her true emergence into the storyline is coming reeaal soon.

SkyRogue- Rogue's here, Rogue's here! And yes, Alec is now a very confused boy. And I'm really glad you liked the quidditch scene- I found it a little hard to write since I'm not that good at doing crazy-cool action scenes. Thanks!

SouthernLoner- Rogue's here!!!

Angelkitty777- Yeah, Alec's had it rough. And this chapter, it'll still be pretty weird for him.

The Violent Tomboy- Yay! You like my x-over. It's pretty hard to write these things, especially when there's so many characters to touch upon from both original stories. So thanks for telling me I''m doing a good job!

Whylime- The thing is, I'm still having Voldemort pretty much laying low for most of the story. And just like people who hate history and don't know the difference between Lenin and Stalin, Alec doesn't really know much about Voldie. The only reason the professors in the Academy made the connection is b/c they're friends of Dumbles, which will be shown muuuuch later in the story.

2693- You get to see Sirius and Remus in this chapter, but I don't know how much you'll like it. Remember, Alec is very different from Harry in man ways…

ladykind- lol! Thanks! I really should've been a philosophy major, I'm so good at it (nooot).

Now, on with the chapter…

Part I: Life In England, Ch. 9- The 'Order' of Things

"The x-men are coming with the boy," Mystique's voice crackled out from over a reciever.

"I know," Magneto responded. Preparations are in motion for us to deal with the situation. However, our allies are requesting a proficient insider, one who is both capable to move freely throughout the castle, adept at gleaning information,"

"Just say the word and I shall return," Mystique returned.

"And magically gifted." Magneto finished.

"But there is on one on our team-" Mystique began, and then faltered. "No. No, you're not talking about!-"

"Yes my friend, Rogue." Magneto continued. "She is the obvious choice after all, being the strongest, swiftest, and-"

"And the most_delicate_ of the Acolytes! Eric, when she fully absorbed Danvers, she nearly lost her mind. You can't do that to her again!"

"All necessary precautions will be taken," Magneto continued. "Agatha will be there to watch her throughout the proceedings. All we need is a capable magical user, preferably one of their officers, or…'aurors', and we will have the perfect spy."

"I won't allow my daughter to be hurt once more!" Mystique fought back.

Magneto's voice became sharp. " Do you forget who you are? Our great work? You have no choice on this matter. Either you are with us, or you are against us!"

"Of course I'm with you, but-" Mystique's voice seemed to break, " but she is my daughter. I worry about her."

"Remember I was the one who sent you to retrieve her. I was the one who wanted that powerful young mutant on our side. Keep in mind she has _always_ been more than just your daughter."

"Understood," Mystique humbly muttered.

"Good. Now Mystique, I have an assignment for you: I'd like you capture and retrieve for us a man named John Dawlish."

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"Here we are, Harry!" An overly-exuberant witch exclaimed.

Alec looked at the spindly old house with great distaste. " _This_ is your headquarters?" He asked incredulously, and the woman 'Tonks' brightly nodded.

" Quickly now Harry, inside with ye'" The older auror Moody nudged him forwards.

"Hey, hands off!" Alec exclaimed moodily. "And the name's _Alec_, not Harry," He growled at the two of them.

Alastor nodded. "Good point, boy. It's better use an alias outside than you're real name, which is sure to draw attention."

Alec's teeth ground, and Tonks ran interference. "How about we just get inside, alright?"

Alec had stepped into what he had already dubbed 'Headquarter Hell' in his mind. He had ample reason to hate the place, but seeing the real headquarters for themselves truly made him despise it, now.

Alec had been expecting some state of the art magical protections, an enormous, well kept building, and ample staff running throughout the place._This_ was just some dingy old house with an old attention-diverting ward. How in the world would this make for any better protection that the locked-down Xavier Institute? They were all full of crap.

Alec followed his escorts through a narrow, rickety hallway. Tonks quietly whispered something back to Harry which he completely misunderstood. "What?"

The young woman whispered again. "What?" Alec asked, louder. "Could you please speak up, I can't understand a word-"

"_PLAGUE UPON OUR FAMILY! DIRTY HALF-BLOODS, DESPICABLE-"_The tirade went on at an ear-shattering pitch, making Alec cringe while the the other two wrestled with some curtains. Alec peeked to see the portrait of a mean old witch screaming at the top of her lungs.

Tonks waved Alec on down the hallway, and he quickly slipped into the room at the end. Shutting the door, he closed his eyes and exhaled.

"WELCOME BACK, HARRY!" Alec nearly jumped out of his skin as streamers flew from all sides. Alec jerkily dodged the flying menaces, but his arm was caught by an older looking man who dragged him to the head of the table.

Alec stood stock-still as what seemed like a mob jumped up at him. "Harry, my god! You look just like your father, but you have your mothers eyes," The man that pulled him to the table said.

"I can' believe 'yer still alive," A mammoth of a man wept, and was lead from the table by a red-headed man.

" And I bet he's just as much of a rascal, too," A paler-haired man stated

"Of course he would be! Right Harry boy?" Alec tensed.

"Who are you?" He asked as politely as he could, but it came out rather coolly. "And my name's not Harry, you know."

The two were a bit taken aback. "I'm your godfather Sirius Black." He stopped, and then began again. "Where are my manners, let me introduce you to everyone here!"

"This fellow here was a good friend of your parents, Remus Lupin." Lupin waved to him in a friendly manner.That big man crying in the corner is Rubeus Hagrid, and all of the redheads in the room are Weasleys."

A chorus of "hey!"s and "That's not fair!" broke out, and a tall red-head stood up, smiling "Let us introduce ourselves, Harry. I'm Fred and this here's George," George gave him a lackadaisical salute and continued for his brother, "Over there's our widdle brwother Ronnie-kins,"

"Would you quit that!" The younger boy shouted, ears red.

"My name's Alec, by the way-" Alec called out, but the volume in the room was so loud he was barely heard.

"-and over there's our little sister Ginerva, A.K.A Ginny." One of the twins continued. The girl blushed a deep red and turned away.

"Oh, and Ma and Pa Weasley are over there," Fred, or George pointed to a woman putting the finishing confections on a cake while the man read a paper.

Suddenly a bushy-haired girl tromped down the stairs."Ron! Ron! Did you know that Harry Potter's parents-" The girl looked up. "Harry Potter! Oh- oh my, why didn't anyone call me down?"

Alec's rather frustrated protest that he _wasn't_ Harry Potter went unheard yet again due to the cacophony of of people answering the girl.

Amongst the rabble, the cake-decorating woman called out, "It's done!". There was a scramble for chairs as a massive, tasty looking cake was settled right in front of Alec's face. It read, "Welcome Home Harry Potter".

The candles magically lit, and what felt like a million unfamiliar faces stared down at him eagerly.

"Make a wish Harry!" The blond man called out, "I know it's not your birthday, but what the hell!" Alec was wound tight as a coil.

"Did you know that the birthday wishing tradition was started by Lucinda the Kind, who-"

"Later, 'Moine!" The girl sniffed as all eyes turned back to Alec.

"Come on then Harry," his godfather said, "blow out the candles," as the man placed a hand on Alec's shoulder. That was all it took.

"Get off of me!" Alec yelled, jumping up and shrugging the offending hand away. The whole group seemed to gravitate towards him, and he stepped back. "I'm not Harry, you understand? My name's Alec, A, L, E, C, Alec! And my_home_ is in New York!" By now Alec was panting, standing behind his chair as the group slowly recoiled from him.

"I've got to go," Alec said, and with that ran out of the room, back through the hallway, and out the door.

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"Professor, I want to go home," Alec said. He was on a public phone a few blocks away from the Order of the Phoenix's headquarters, trying to remain unseen. The group would undoubtedly be looking for him, he knew. He just needed a little air.

"Alec, you know our defenses are not yet prepared to keep you safe here," Professor Xavier explained apologetically. "They will be done in time for you to visit over the holidays, but until then I need to you to stay with the wizards."

Alec rested his head on the glass. "it's just, they act like they know me or something," Alec explained. "It's too much. I'm just," His voice cracked, "I'm_not_ Harry Potter! Do you understand, Professor?" Alec asked desperately.

The Professor sighed deeply. "Yes, I understand. It's one thing to make your own first impression; it's another to have to live up to other peoples' ideas of who you are. I'm sorry about that."Alec finally unwound, knowing that at least one person understood his slowly building hysteria since he'd come to London.

"I'll talk to the headmaster about this issue, alright Alec?"

"Yeah," Alec sighed, calming down.

The professor paused a moment, thinking. "Would you like Scott to come visit?"

Alec perked up. "Yes!! I-I mean, yeah, if he's not too busy," Alec hastily responed. He was desperate to have anyone he knew with him, and his brother would be a great comfort.

"Scott already told me he wished to visit you some time," The Professor explained. "I'll just discuss it with him and set up a flight."

Alec smiled, finally feeling at ease. "Thanks, Professor."

" Good. Now I expect you to contact one of their members immediately and return to their headquarters."

Alec nodded grimly. "Yes sir. Bye Professor."

" Goodbye."

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Alec miserably walked the few block back towards the HQ. "Har- I mean, Alec!" The girl Tonks had found him again, though now her hair was a vivid magenta. 'Wasn't her hair purple before?' Alec wondered.

"Everybody's been looking for you." She smiled at him kindly. "And I'm sorry if the party was a bit much; A lot of those wizards and witches knew your parents, and were a little too enthusiastic in their greetings because of it." She clapped him on his shoulder as they walked back into the dingy house.

"No, it was fine." Alec sulked. Now that he was calm, he rather felt like an ass for running out on the party they must have worked hard to make. "I'm sorry about that. It was very unkind of me to just leave, but I was a bit- overwhelmed."

"No, it's quite understandable, really," Tonks continued. They stepped inside, past the screaming portrait. "Wotcher! I found Alec everyone!"

A few of the teens barreled down the stairs. "There you are," The bushy haired one said. One of the Weasley kids was with her.

"Um. Yeah." Alec scratched the back of his head, uncomfortable. "Sorry about earlier."

"Nah, don't worry about it mate," The boy said kindly. "I guess we were all acting a little off, because how often do you get to meet Ha-" The boy paused, looking uncomfortable.

Alec sighed. "It's alright, really. I won't freak out on you again."

The duo still cringed. Tonks ruffled Alec's hair and walked off whistling, leaving the three of them standing there dumbly.

Alec grabbed for an explanation. "I know everyone here thinks of me as Harry Potter, but I had a completely different life before I found out about…this," .Alec mentally added the words _complete disaster_ to the end of the sentence, but figured it might not go down too well with the other two.

"It was unfair of us to do that, really," The bushy haired girl said. "How about we start over?" Alec nodded, a small smile breaking over his features.

"I'm Hermoine Granger, nice to meet you," The girl held out her hand, and Alec shook it.

"And I'm Ron Weasley," The ginger haired boy said, propmted by Hermoine's elbow in his side. "What? He already knows who we are!" Ron told the irate girl.

"Actually, I didn't catch too many names earlier," Alec said smiling. "And nice to meet you too, I'm Alec Xavier."

"So Alec, what was life like in America? I heard you've been living with mutants- how fascinating!" Hermoine questioned.

"Wait, what are mutants?"

"Ron! I told you yesterday. Forgive him, he can be a little slow at times-" Hermoine joked.

"Hey! I take offense to that!"

Alec laughed. "How about I just explain it, then?"

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Mystique looked at her daughter, eyes impassive, as she watched her practice magic. Rogue worked smoothly and quickly, setting fire to one dummy and then shearing the next in half, hitting with various spells both light and dark in nature.

"She's made great progress in her magic," Magneto commented, satisfied. After having Dawlish completely absorbed and locked away in the girls' mind, they had additionally made her aborb a talented french witch well-versed in the dark arts in order to give her the capability to stand up against the headmaster of the school.

The girl finished with a small explosion, and exited the training room. She observed the other two mutants, her eyes dull, as if she wasn't really there.

"You're making admirable progress, Rogue," Magneto commented as the girl grabbed her water bottle and took a gulp. "The magical school opens soon, so you must be ready. Remember making friends and keeping your cover is just as vital as being a competent magician and fighter."

"I'll work on it, Magneto." Her voice sounded hollow.

Magneto looked at the girl for a moment, probing, then turned to leave. Mystique followed behind the man, her face inscrutable.

"What do you think of your daughter's accomplishments?" Magneto questioned.

Raven's eyes swept over the other mutant sharply, and then her face was unreadable once more. "Her powers and abilities are growing rapidly, but her mind has grown unstable."

"I agree," Magneto said, nodding. "Which means that Agatha Harkness will have to be in close contact with her at all times. "

"How will you do that?" Mystique asked.

"It is already taken care of," Magneto smiled.

A/N-

If peeps think Alec's being mean, just think about his position! He's in a new place he's never seen before, having to fulfill a role he never wanted, and taken from a place where he was happy. And to top it all off, there's an unfamiliar group of people coming close to straight-up adoring him, talking to him as if they know him, and telling him 'welcome home'. If I was Alec, I wouldn't feel comfortable at all. So, don't kill me if you don't like Alec's interaction with Sirius and the others. They all meant the best by throwing him a party, but didn't recognize the stress it would put on him.


	10. Part I: Chapter 10 Settling In

Hey again everyone,

Sorry I took so long to update. It's a new semester now, and I've got a ton more work and classes. But I'm powering through!!! So here's the next chapter. This chapter has the first appearance of Dumbledore since quite a while ago, and gives better explanation to what Voldie's been up to. It's hard to get a good idea of how Dumbledore would act with Alec; in the books he loved him, but here they've never really met. So tell me what you think.

Oh, and Rogue's in this chapter.

To my reviewers:

Jade- I'm alive!! Gika Black- Thanks, and here's the update. XcrimsonroseX- Alec and Rogue meeting might be three-four chapters away. MistyMossFlower- Thanks! bandgsecurtiyaw- Thanks! A Bilbiophile- yeah, it was pretty harsh of Alec but he's trying to fit in this chapter. SkyRogue- Cool! I'm glad that you're psyched about a magical Rogue. Yeah, she's not okay, and yes, you'll get to see her in action. Whylime- Sorry, no Ella Enchanted, though it's cool you thought that! And I'm glad you thought his reaction made sense. Harry sort of had a smilar reaction when first introduced in the books; the difference was that he was so starved for love and affection that he took anything he could get. Really, do you think it was safe to go off with some weird, magic umbrella wielding loony into a dark, stormy night?! In my story, Alec's happy where he is and doesn't want to leave.

Part I- Life in England, Chapter 10 –

Blue eyes twinkled merrily. Alec stared back in confounded annoyance. _This_ was the leader of the forces of light??!!

"Sherbert lemon, Alec?"

Alec looked at him strangely. "I-I beg your pardon?"

Dumbledore took out a bowl full of candy from his desk, holding towards the younger wizard. "Would you like a sherbert lemon?" He asked.

"Um, no. Thank you." Alec responded, watching the ancient wizard pop two of the said candies into his mouth.

"Suit yourself. Well, I suppose we should get down to business." The old man twiddled with his beard, looking Alec over. "You were once known as Harry Potter."

Alec refrained from rolling his eyes. "Right."

" Good, good!" Dumbledore praised, as if Alec had made some achievement. "Now what do you know about yourself as Harry Potter?"

Alec gave him a irked glance. " I apparently survived 'avada kedavra', sent your Dark Lord into hiding, and as of recent need to go into hiding now that he's back." Alec listed glibly.

"Indeed, very good." Dumbledore continued. "You read up on yourself well, then? Know most everything you need to know about your old self?"

Alec ignored the bizarreness of the question, and nodded.

"Good. Then this discussion will be a little easier for you." The aging headmaster finished his last sherbert lemon, his demeanor becoming more serious. "While you know most everything, there are some well hidden secrets involving yourself and Voldemort which you must swear not to talk about." The Professor continued gravely.

Alec was uncomfortable. "Secrets? About me? But what… I'm not hiding anything."

Dumbledore watched him sympathetically. "Ahh, but these are not truly your secrets, but secrets involving you."

"Oh," Alec responded, lost. "Well… I promise not to talk about it." Alec felt a tickling sensation for a moment.

"Good. Now make yourself comfortable; this will take a while."

The pair talked for some time, first about the man who was once named Riddle and his strange, sorry life. Next, he explained the full story about Alec's parents' deaths, and how Dumbledore had a theory that Alec had been protected from his mothers sacrafice.

Alec was particulary boggled by how his mother's sacrifice protected him from Voldemort. "So my mother's death… It blocked Avada Kedavra?" Alec questioned, stunned.

"That is my theory." Dumbledore explained quietly.

"Does that have to do with my ability to not be noticed, as well?" Alec questioned.

"What do you mean, Alec?" Dumbledore asked, his curiosity piqued.

"Well, when I was younger I just wanted to be left alone and all, and…People would stop noticing me, I guess." Alec looked at Dumbledore. "Does that make any sense?"

"Not a whit," Dumbledore responded briskly. "But not everything has to make sense to be true."

Alec gave a watery smile. "I guess so."

Dumbledore mulled the new tidbit of information over for a time. "Hmm. That fits in well…"

"What?" Alec asked distractedly, caught up in his own world as well.

"We searched for you for years and years, using every and any tracking spell to find you. We collected every garment to burn for divining circles, and took every hair or skin sample we could to do body traces. Yet nothing worked. It was as if something was interfering with the spells. Perhaps it was this ability that made you impossible to trace?"

Alec ran a hand through his hair, abashed. "Maybe. But I stopped feeling like that about three years ago."

"The ministry ran out of all objects used for tracing but one four years ago." Dumbledore elucidated. "And I'm afraid to say that that single hair is the cause of all your troubles today."

"Are you kidding me?" Alec asked, feeling nettled. One tiny hair that he shed eight years ago was currently ruining his life? "How?!"

"When the search for you first began I had our Potions Professor make a particularly challenging brew,_Vivendi Nunc_. With any single piece of a cell, such as a bit of skin or the root of a hair, the user could cast a spell and be able to tell whether or not the owner of the cell was alive or dead. It was the only spell that worked."

Alec sat numbly, thinking of what it must have been for Professor Dumbledore and the others to know he was alive, and nothing more. Alec's mind flickered to the beautifully broken young girl which he'd never seen or heard from for four years, Anna. Alec had bouts of irrational paranoia that the sweet girl was in trouble somehow, despite the fact that she had her whole family to take care of her. He imagined what it would feel like to worry about her, yet only be able to know she was alive and nothing more. It was almost worse than knowing nothing at all.

Alec looked back up to find Professor Dumbledore watching him with sorrowful, sympathetic eyes. "That must have been terrible," Alec said quietly.

"It was," Dumbledore responded. "Although you didn't know me, I knew quite a lot about you. I watched over you, so to speak."

Which made sense, Alec realized. Oddly dressed people often came to his rescue in his younger years. Alec thought nothing of it then, but now realized it must have been friendly wizards. "So I was watched?"

"Yes. But that is besides the point. The single remaining hair is what you need to know about." Dumbledore mumbled a quiet spell, and all the portraits in his room fell into deep slumber. "It is of absolute importance that these secrets, above all the rest, are kept quiet."

Alec nodded seriously.

"The last remaining hair had been in my custody up until a few months ago," The Professor began. "I claimed it for use early into the search. However, the Ministry felt that it was being wasted in a _Vivendi Nunc_ potion. They wanted to try a tracing spell one more time."

"That doesn't make much sense," Alec commented. "Why did they think a new tracing spell would work if all the other spells failed?"

"Their claim was that it worked differently than the other tracing spells, though they wouldn't say what was made it unique. I am of the belief that there were other forces at work with that decision." Dumbledore pulled out a scroll. Here are the contributors for the bill to retrieve the hair from Hogwarts. Notice anything?"

Alec went through the list of contributors quickly, flipping from page to page. "Certain people keep on showing up. I've noticed the name Mulciber and Nott a few times. Mr. Malfoy appears on every single petition."

"Each one of them were alleged Deatheaters," Dumbledore explained darkly. "They escaped sentence by claiming they were under the influence of the _imperiu_s curse. Although I fought the act to the best of my power, the court ruled agianst me. I was forced to hand the hair over, and almost as soon as it left my custody it was stolen from the Department of Evidence."

Alec's breath caught. "So it got into the hands of Voldemort?" Alec asked, terror lacing his words.

"Certain sources have verified this as fact." Dumbledore explained gravely. "What is more, he used it for the most foul of purposes."

Suddenly, the Headmaster leaned back and relaxed for a moment. "Tell me Alec, have you heard of cloning?"

"Yeah. But that's muggle technology, Professor," He explained, confused.

"Indeed, this is true. However there are spells that have a similar nature," Alec felt the fine hairs on the nape of his neck rise, " to reproduce life, though in a much more twisted fashion."

"He cloned me," Alec stated, stunned.

"He did." Dumbledore agreed somberly. "And he went a step further. He used one of your clones-"

"-_One_ of my clones? As in more than one?!" Alec asked, nearly hysterical.

"-He used one of your clones in an ancient ritual to make himself a long lasting body. Previously he had lived as a host in a number of living creatures, all of which would eventually die within a few months."

Alec felt sick.

"By using your cloned blood, I'm afraid that he may have circumvented the protection that your mother endowed you with. I also worry that the two of you may be connected more intimately in other ways."

Dumbledore took a moment to look at the poor boy in front of him. Alec was pale, and his hands slightly shaking. He looked like he was a step away from vomiting.

"How about we continue this discussion at a later time?" Dumbledore asked kindly.

"No. No, I want to know." Was the adamant reply.

Dumbledore scrutinized the boy carefully for a time. Finally, he seemed to have passed some test, and the old man continued. " I'm afraid he is now capable of tracing as easily as anyone else. I also fear that he might be able to reach you on an unconcious level. Further, I am worried that he may develop your gift for becoming untraceable. And in the worst case scenario, I fear that he may be able to control you in some way."

Alec shuddered.

"It was pure luck that your school doctor took note of that odd cut you obtained during your quidditch match. He knew there was no way you could have gotten the cut from the fall, nor from the bludger."

Alec's eyes widened, and he cried, "My dorm at the Academy! It must have traces of me everywhere!"

"All incinerated," The Professor explained quietly.

"… What about my friends? My Professors?" Alec asked.

"They're all hidden under the protection of the US Magical Administration." Dumbledore explained slowly.

"…They are?" Alec felt terrible; he didn't want to drag anyone else into this mess. "When will they be able to live as usual again?"

""I am not sure," The Headmaster apologized. For a moment, they sat in heavy silence."That's all we should talk about for now, then." Dumbledore finished.

"No. There's still more I need to know. I want to know it." Despite his clammy palms and sweaty brow, he had an almost sick desire to know more, to know everything.

"I'll tell you the rest at a later time. For now, I suggest you rest. Your brother will be coming soon."

"I don't want to rest," Alec said, almost desperately. "I want to know."

"All in good time," Dumbledore answered.

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"Alec!" Scott ran up the stairs of the decrepit house and gave his younger brother a quick hug. It had been a little over two weeks that the two had last seen each other, but to Alec it felt like months. He hugged the older boy back tightly.

"What's up bro? This place seems pretty… odd." Scott conferred quietly. "I expected better."

"I held the same sentiments when I first got here. Still do, but no one's killed me yet so it can't be that bad," Alec cynically half joked. Scott looked at Alec, concerned.

"You doing okay, Alec?"

"Fine, fine." A lie.

Scott looked at him, uncertain as to whether he should persue the incedent. But before Scott could make up his mind, the two were whisked indoors by the portly Weasley woman.

"Oh, you've arrived!" The woman said cheerily as Scott's escort dragged his bags up the stairs, grumbling. "come inside dears, and I'll make some tea."

The two followed behind the witch as she idly chattered. "it's so nice to finally meet one of…Alec's family from America," Mrs. Weasley still had a hard time not referring to him as 'Harry'. " I'm Molly Weasley by the way, pleasure to meet you."

"Scott Summers," Scott replied, shaking her hand.

"You're not Mr. Xavier's son?" She asked, surprised.

"Uh, no. I was also adopted by the Professor as well," Scott replied uncomfortably.

"Well bless his soul! How kind he must be to take you all in," She said as she set the kettle over the fire.

Alec and Scott nodded mutely.

Mrs. Weasley busied herself with the settings."We're inside dear, there's no need to wear sunglasses."

Seeing that Scott was at a loss of what to say without seeming rude, Alec explained, "He actually needs to wear them, Mrs. Weasley."

"Oh." There was a moment of uncomfortable silence. "So what's the weather like in America right now?" Mrs. Weasley asked stiffly.

The kitchen door flew open. "East wing's clear now, mum," Ron and Hermoine tromped in, looking a bit worse for wear. "The bloody pixies wouldn't leave us be, though. Oh, hey Alec,"

"Hey," Alec returned.

"Ronald, language!" Mrs. Weasley scolded mildly before taking out some cups. "Do you two want tea as well?"

"Yes please Mrs. Weasley," Hermoine piped in, taking a seat at the table.

"Hermoine, Ron, I'd like you to meet my brother Scott," Alec introduced.

"Nice to meet you," Hermoine politely greeted.

" Good to meet you, bloke. Is it really true that you flooded a floor of your house?" Ron asked, chuckling.

"Alec," Scott growled.

"Whaaat?" Alec returned, laughing. "They wanted to know more about you, so I told them a few stories." Scott sighed in exasperation as the trio laughed.

"Okay I did that, but it happened ages ago," Scott returned. "I've got jobs and resopsonsibilities nowadays, and don't fool around as much as I used to."

Alec rolled his eyes. "Or at all. Jean's got you housebroken _and_ whipped."

Mrs. Weasley set the tea on the table, and they all poured themselves cups. Mrs. Weasley left, saying something about chores.

"What jobs do you have back at the Xavier Mansion?" Hermoine asked, interested.

"Oh, you know…"Scott said, stalling. "Watching after the other students and stuff."

"Hm," was Hermoine's response. Alec knew she was sharp, and could tell that he hadn't told the full truth.

"So what can you do, mate?" Ron asked.

"What, do you mean my powers?" Scott asked.

"Yeah! Alec told me you've got something with your eyes, a lazy beam or something."

"Lazer beam," Scott corrected.

"What _is_ it?" Ron asked.

"_Ron_!" Hermoine hissed, not so subtly kicking him under the table. "This is not the time."

"No, it's fine," Scott responded. "My eyes have the ability of emitting a high frequency wavelength of light, which has the capability of shearing or burning through objects."

"Don't undertand the first bit mate, but I got the shearing or burning part. Sounds bloody brilliant!"

Scott made a face between a smile and a wince. "It's alright. Sometimes it's not so fun, though."

Ron wisely picked up on the cues and changed subject. "So, how about a tour of the house, hm?"

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Mystique's mouth was set in a firm line as she watched the wizard look over her daughter.

" What family did you say she was from, Severus?" The blonde wizard asked, raising an arched eyebrow at the girl sitting in the hallway.

"She isn't a pureblood; she has no line." Mystique fired back. She had taken the form of another deatheater to set Rogue in place. Mystique didn't trust these wizards despite their allegiance.

"_Oh_," The single word spoke volumes about the man's opinion of her. "I find it hard to believe our great lord would allow such a…low breed to work amongst his ranks. She is not even halfblooded?"

Mystique's eyes flashed. "No, Lucius. And she is no wizard, as well. It would be best if you treat our new allies with _respect_, as our great Lord wishes."

"But of course," the blond simpered. "It is most important to show respect to those who deserve it." It was implied that the girl wasn't deserved.

Mystique smirked at this. What he didn't know. "I'll send her in now. Our Lord wishes for your son to help aquaint her to the school."

Mystique made a hand gesture, and Anna walked into the room. "Anna, I'd like to you meet Lucius Malfoy. You will be staying with him until you go to Hogwarts."

"Nice to meet you Mr. Malfoy," Anna said, holding out her hand. Lucius didn't shake it.

"I have errands now, I must go," Mystique went over to the fireplace. "I'll see the two of you later. And please, don't kill the new ally," The imbecile Lucius thought the warning was directed at him, but her daughter knew better. Anna nodded slightly.

Mystique left, leaving the other two alone. "So…_Anna_," Lucius began, "If you'd follow me to the hous elves' quarters we can get you settled right in."

"No," Anna returned simply. "I think I'd like to stay in your best guest room, thank you."

Lucius's eyes grew sharp. "You_insolent mudblood_. You will do as you are told, or you'll live to regret it."The man said sharply.

Anna looked like she thought about it. Finally she said, "mmm… No." She shook her head, smirking.

That was more than enough to send Lucius into a rage. The man pulled out his wand and hissed out a nasty curse. The curse hit Rogue, who just stood stood there.

"Owch," she said lightly, looking at the small scratch that had formed on her skin. "That hurt." A foreboding look washed over her features as she looked at the stunned wizard, who was now backing away.

Anna drew out her wand. Quicker than humanly possible, she had twisted his wand arm and nearly broke his wrist. Unbidden tears sprang to Malfoy's eyes as a wand tip was pressed to his neck.

"_Claudo Carotidum_" Rogue whispered. Lucius stood for a moment, before feeling his whole body tremble. The girl let go of him.

He tried to turn around, but found his limbs unresponsive. The wizard fell in a graceless heap on the floor. Next thing he knew he was waking up. The girl stood by, watching him.

The girl was sitting in his chaise, sipping on the firewhiskey he had just recently decanted. "The spell's still on you, but I've let it loosen." She murmured, as Lucius got up. His hands were still shaking from the ordeal, and while the spell hadn't hurt, it was the closest thing he'd ever felt to death. This girl would kill him without a thought, if necessary.

Now if only he could find a way to kill her first.

" My guest room?" The girl asked briskly.

"Of course," he returned coldly, politely. "Tilly!" A house elf appeared. "Show this girl to the estate suite. And Anna, aren't you too young to drink?" He said as he tried to grab the drink out out of Anna's hands. The glass broke explosively, cutting the man's hands. Anna was mysteriously unharmed.

"Oh, I'm terribly sorry" she fake apologized. Anna left, following the shaking house elf.

Once she left, Malfoy had a hard time from not taking the room to pieces. The girl was evil…_unnatural_. Nobody should be able to do what she did. She had to pay.

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translates to I close the carotid artery, the major artery on your neck that brings your brain oxygen-filled blood. If the carotid is blocked (like in a proper sleeper hold), you can knock someone out. They person can still breath, the blood just can't make it to their head.


End file.
